Japanese Print "The Courtesan Sankatsu of the Minoya (Minoya Sankatsu)" by Utagawa Kunisada
Artist:Utagawa Kunisada
Title:The Courtesan Sankatsu of the Minoya (Minoya Sankatsu)
Date:about 1817
Details:More information...
Source:Worcester Art Museum
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Description:
This print belongs to what is believed to be one of Kunisada I’s first series of beauties, indicated by an early variant of his name in which he uses the character 五. It features a specific, high-ranking courtesan from brothels in Edo’s (modern-day Tokyo’s) “red-light” Yoshiwara district. Interestingly, Kunisada transformed the traditional rectangular cartouche typically found on prints into a cotton hand towel known as a tenugui. It is possible that these towels were given to brothel guests as souvenirs specific to the brothel or to the individual woman with whom they spent time.
