Courtesan Dreaming of her Childhood, c. 1770. 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.

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Size: 1546px × 7975px
Photo credit: © Heritage Art/Heritage Images / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No

Keywords: 1615-1868, 1724-1770, art, cleveland, colour, edo, harunobu, heritage, japan, japanese, museum, period, print, suzuki, woodblock