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Courtesan Dreaming of her Childhood

c. 1770

Suzuki Harunobu 鈴木春信

(Japanese, 1724–1770)
Japan, Edo period (1615-1868)
color woodblock print
Sheet: 68 x 12.8 cm (26 3/4 x 5 1/16 in.)
Gift of J. H. Wade 1920.516
Location: not on view
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Description

This print depicts a courtesan dreaming about the time she was taken from her family to become a courtesan. The man leading the girl by the hand is probably escorting her to the Yoshiwara, the entertainment district in Edo. This format is called a pillar print, or hashira-e (literally, "pillar picture"). It is made by pasting two sheets together vertically to form a long, narrow picture, often hung as a decoration on the narrow support posts of the interior of Japanese houses.
Courtesan Dreaming of her Childhood

Courtesan Dreaming of her Childhood

c. 1770

Suzuki Harunobu

(Japanese, 1724–1770)
Japan, Edo period (1615-1868)

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