Katsushika Hokusai (1760-1849) | Poem by Prince Motoyoshi | Edo period, 19th century

For his final single-sheet woodblock print series, Hyakunin isshu uba ga etoki (One Hundred Poems Explained by the Nurse), Hokusai turned to the celebrated anthology Hyakunin isshu (One Hundred Poems by One Hundred Poets) as his source. The anthology, comprising one hundred poems on the themes of love and melancholy, was compiled by the poet Fujiwara no Teika (1162-1241) in the thirteenth century. Hokusai chose to interpret the verses visually through the perspective of a fictional elderly nurse. Twenty-seven published prints are known, together with sixty-four preparatory drawings; each print is characterised by bold colour and incorporates a cartouche enclosing the relevant verse.

The series was commissioned by the publisher Nishimura Yohachi (active circa 1762-1835), whose firm Eijudo successfully issued five prints before ceasing operations. The remaining twenty-two prints were subsequently published by Iseya Sanjiro's firm Iseri (dates unknown), with the original Eijudo seal continuing to appear on the impressions.

The poem by Prince Motoyoshi (Motoyoshi Shinno, 890-943) has been translated by Peter MacMillan in One Hundred Poets, One Poem Each: A Treasury of Classical Japanese Verse, (London, 2016), p. 32: 

I’m so desperate, it’s all the same.

Like the channel markers of Naniwa

whose name means ‘self-sacrifice’,

let me give up my life

to see you once again.

Wabinureba

ima hata onaji

Naniwa naru

mi-o-tsukushite mo

awan to zo omou

A similar impression of the same print is in the collection of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, accession number 1906,1220,0.578, go to:

https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/A_1906-1220-0-578