Chiyoda Castle (Album of Men)
Medium
Triptych of woodblock prints; ink and color on paper
Dimensions
L. (page) 13 7/8 in. (35.2 cm); W. (page) 9 1/4 in. (23.4 cm); thickness of album 1 9/16 in. (4 cm)
Classification
Prints
Culture & Period
Japan · Meiji period (1868–1912)
Department
Asian Art
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of Mrs. W. Walton Butterworth, 1979
Accession Number
JP3577
Tags
Art Historical Context
Welcome to the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Asian Art collection, where Yōshū (Hash) Chikanobu's *Chiyoda Castle ( of Men)* (1897) captivates with its vibrant Meiji-era energy. This triptych of woodblock prints, crafted in ink and color on paper, part of an intimate album format—measuring about 14 by 9 inches per page—that invites close viewing. Chikanobu, a master of uki-e ("pictures of the floating world"), specialized in dynamic historical scenes, blending traditional Japanese printmaking with the era's modern influences during Japan's rapid Westernization (1868–1912). The artwork bursts w...
About the Artist
Yōshū (Hashimoto) Chikanobu · 1838–1912
Toyohara Chikanobu, born Hashimoto Naoyoshi in 1838 in Echigo Province (modern Niigata Prefecture), emerged as one of the last great ukiyo-e masters during Japan's Meiji era. The son of a low-ranking samurai retainer to the Sakakibara clan, he trained initially in the Kanō school of painting before turning to ukiyo-e printmaking. He studied under a disciple of Keisai Eisen, then joined the studio ...