Accession Number
1948/1.173

Title
Courtesan and her retinue on an outing (part of triptych)

Artist(s)
Utagawa Toyokuni I

Artist Nationality
Japanese (culture or style)

Object Creation Date
late 1780

Medium & Support
large full-color woodblock print (nishiki e) on paper, large-format (ôban), part of triptych

Dimensions
14 7/8 in. x 10 1/8 in. ( 37.78 cm x 25.72 cm )

Credit Line
Bequest of Margaret Watson Parker

Label copy
Gallery Rotation Fall 2013
Utagawa Toyokuni I
Japan, 1769–1825
Courtesan and Her Retinue on an Outing
Edo period (1615–1868)
Late 1780s
Color woodblock print, part of a triptych
Bequest of Margaret Watson Parker, 1948/1.173

Subject matter
This image reveals a group of Yoshiwara courtesans. The woman with the fan pattern is the highest ranking courtesan. The woman to her left is her junior, wearing a kimono decorated with stylized stars. This pattern is slightly altered and repeated on the kimono of the two child attendants. The woman in the black-and-white striped kimono is a maid.

Physical Description
An image of three older women and two young girls standing together outside of a building. The woman to the left wears a plain kimono of black stripes and a green obi. The two women in the center wear layered kimono of orange shades, with the woman on the right wearing star burst designs and the woman on the left wearing a fan and flower design. The two young girls also wear kimono of orange and a different style of star burst pattern. In the background is a scene of trees and a pond.

Primary Object Classification
Print

Primary Object Type
color print

Collection Area
Asian

Rights
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Keywords
costume (mode of fashion)
costumes
courtesans