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The Cloth-Fulling Jewel River, a Famous Place in Settsu Province
The Cloth-Fulling Jewel River, a Famous Place in Settsu Province

The Cloth-Fulling Jewel River, a Famous Place in Settsu Province

Artist Suzuki Harunobu Japanese, 1725 - 1770
Place of OriginJapan
Date1769-1770
CultureJapanese
MaterialsInk and colors on paper
DimensionsH. 27 in x W. 4 1/2 in, H. 68.6 cm x W. 11.4 cm (hashira-e)
Credit LineGift of the Grabhorn Ukiyo-e Collection
Object number2005.100.37
DepartmentJapanese Art
ClassificationsPrints And Drawings
On View
Not on view
SignedSignature: 春信画 Harunobu ga
Text Entries

鈴木春信筆 『風俗六玉川』

「擣衣の玉川 摂津国の名所」

This long, narrow print frames a glimpse of a young prostitute at leisure. Still in her bedclothes,

she uses a bamboo pick (mimikaki) to clean one ear while standing on a veranda. Secured at the

waist with a loosely tied sash, her robes fall open below the knee, revealing a bit of bare leg. In the

garden are autumn plants and a grasshopper. Edo-period viewers would have enjoyed the witty

combination of this intimate contemporary scene with the classical poem inscribed at the top.

matsukaze no When the wind passes

oto dani aki wa in the pines, autumn already

sabishiki ni seems lonely enough—

koromo utsu nari and then a fulling block echoes

tamakawa no sato through Tamakawa Village.

By mentioning the distinctive sound of fulling, a process of softening and drying cloth by pounding

with a wooden mallet, the lines refer to the Cloth-Fulling Jewel River, one of six rivers commonly

cited in court poetry. A square panel frames a picture of the poet, a woman known as Sagami (active early eleventh century).