Artist: Hiroshige I Utagawa (1797 - 1858) Title: 48. Seki. Monk Ikkyu and the Hell Courtesan (Jigoku Dayu) Series: Fifty-three Parallels for the Tokaido Road Publisher: Ebiya Rinnosuke Date: 1845 - 1846 Condition: Binding holes and small wormhole on the right. Wear on the bottom left corner. Some soiling. Light crease at the top. Size: 24.7 x 36.4 cm The series 'Fifty-three Parallels for the Tokaido Road' became famous for its striking designs and stories illustrated, but also because of the collaboration between publishers and three important artists of the day. Utagawa Kuniyoshi (1798 - 1861) produced thirty-one prints for the series, Utagawa Hiroshige (1797 - 1858) nineteen and Utagawa Kunisada (1786 - 1864) the remaining eight, adding up to more than the 'fifty-three' prints implied in the title. Each print has a cartouche at the top with explanatory text on the stories drawn from folklore and history associated with the post-stations of Tokaido. Monk Ikkyu stands before Jigoku Dayu, brandishing a skull on a stick to remind her of the inevitability of death. He enlightened the young courtesan as to the evils of her profession, and she became a convert to religious life. Dayu is a term of respect for the highest rank of courtesan, while jigoku (hell) is the lowest form of an unlicensed person working in the pleasure quarters. Her robe is appropriately decorated with scenes of torture of the Buddhist Hell. Kannon, the goddess of mercy, appears on the front of her robe design.