Antique Utamaro Kitagawa Woodblock Print “Hana-Ogi”. Utamaro designed and made prints showing the full faces of idealized beauties during the 1790s. This one is of Hana-ogi, or Flower-Fan, of Edo, as the cartouche on the upper left indicates, which also indicates her house (Ogiya) and address, her name and those of her attendants. She has the end of a brush in her mouth as she reads, or writes on, a scroll, which may be a love letter. On the left is “Utamaro hitsu, ” or drawn by Utamaro. Without the help of a true connoisseur of Japanese prints, we can’t determine with certainty whether it dates back to the 1790s or somewhat later. The faded colors, thin paper, frayed corners, slight stain, and small holes are all signs of age. A reproduction would have brighter colors and thicker paper, among other differences. The print measures 15.25 x 10.5″, the mat 17 x 12.5″. This item is in the category “Antiques\Asian Antiques\Japan\Prints”. The seller is “hongf66″ and is located in this country: US. This item can be shipped worldwide.

• Region of Origin: Japan
• Maker: Utamaro Kitagawa
• Color: Multi-Color