Viewing Sunset over the Ryögokubashi from the Ommaya Embankment

Catalog note / 解説

The Ommaya Embankment was a landing for a ferry crossing between the Ryögoku and Ökawa bridges, which spanned the Sumida River in Edo. In this print, the long arc of the Ryögoku Bridge is seen from a point near the Ommaya embarkation point. In Hokusai’s time, the Ryögoku Bridge and its vicinity served as a gathering place where, for example, people would crowd to view fireworks during the summer festival. This custom still continues today. In the Edo period, a network of large rivers, such as the Sumida and many subsidiary rivers as well as canals, provided convenient public transportation. For a minimum fee, passengers rode a ferry to a landing nearest to their destination. Ferries carried…