Ehon miyako zōshi 絵本都草紙

FSC-GR-780.447

Commentary by Ishigami Aki

Posted December 3, 2017

Original unedited text in Japanese follows

Ehon miyako zōshi (Picture-book of life in the capital) depicts the customs and manners of life in Kyoto and Osaka during the four seasons. [1] There is no text, except for a preface, and the three volumes consist of the following content: volumes 1 and 3 have ten illustrated double-page openings and a single image, while volume 2 has ten illustrated double-page openings and two single images.

Sukenobu began to design picture-books for the publisher Kikuya Kihē (Kikushūken 菊秀軒), starting with Ehon tōwa kagami (FSC-GR-780.452.1-3) in 1729 (Kyōho 14). Initially, many picture-books had an educational or instructional content, but thereafter production shifted to picture-books portraying the customs and manners of everyday life. Ehon miyako zōshi is one such work.

Sukenobu’s picture-books were important products that were integral to the operation of the Kikuya firm. Following Sukenobu’s death, Kikuya bought the rights to the Sukenobu picture-books that had been released by other publishers. Kikuya obtained the woodblocks for most of them, with the exception of those for the titles issued by Hishiya Jihē 菱屋治兵衛 (Fukujuken 福寿軒). These acquisitions enabled him to compile a “library” of thirty titles that he published as the Ehon Yamato bunko 絵本倭文庫 (Yamato archive of picture-books), which consists of twenty-seven picture-books by Sukenobu, two picture-books by Nishikawa Suketada 西川祐尹 (1706–1758), and one picture-book by Shimokōbe Shūsui 下河辺拾水 (act. late 18^th c.).[2] However, it seems that customers were able to select and customize the number of texts, and examples with five or ten titles collected together are also known. The publication time frame is believed to be around the Kansei era (1789–1801). [3]

Ehon miyako zōshi is divided roughly into three types: 1) those in which the end of volume 3 lacks Kikuya Kihē’sehon rui shomoku 絵本類書目 (catalogue of picture-books) is missing (sixty-three titles in total) [4]; 2) those that have the aforementioned ehon rui shomoku; and 3) copies published in Ehon Yamato bunko. There are no significant differences in content among these three different types. The Pulverer copy lacks an ehon rui shomoku, and all three volumes are bound together.

書名絵本都草紙

執筆者石上阿希

『絵本都草紙』は京都、大坂の四季折々の生活を描いた風俗絵本である。序文以外に文章はなく、上巻見開き10図・半丁1図、中巻見開き10図・半丁2図、下巻見開き10図・半丁1図で構成されている。

西川祐信が版元菊屋喜兵衛から絵本を刊行したのは享保14年1729『絵本答話鑑』からである。当初は教訓的内容の絵本が多かったが、その後人々の暮らしぶりを描いた風俗絵本へと展開していく。『絵本都草紙』もその一つである。

祐信絵本は菊屋を支える重要な商品であった。祐信の死後、菊屋は他の版元から刊行された祐信絵本を求版し、菱屋治兵衛刊行のものをのぞいてほとんどの版を手に入れた。それをもとに、祐信絵本27点、西川祐尹の絵本2点、下河辺拾水の絵本1点で構成した全30点の叢書をまとめ『絵本倭文庫』として刊行した。[1] ただし、注文に応じて適宜冊数を選びことができたようで、5点や10点で構成されたものも確認できる。刊行時期は寛政1789–1801頃とされている。[2]

『絵本都草紙』には、1下巻末に菊屋喜兵衛の「絵本類書目」全63点がないもの、2同書目があるもの、3『絵本倭文庫』所収本、の三種類がある。いずれも内容の異同はない。[3] プルヴェラー本は、「絵本類書目」がなく、上、中、下巻を一冊に合綴したものである。

Selected readings:

Matsudaira Susumu 松平進, Moronobu Sukenobu ehon shoshi 『師宣西川祐信絵本書誌』(Tokyo: Seishōdō shoten, 1988), 224–26.

Matsudaira Susumu 松平進, “Sukenobu ehon no hankō to fukyū” 「祐信絵本の版行と普及」, Ukiyo-e geijutsu 53 『浮世絵芸術53』(1977), 3–13.

Copies in other collections:

Art Institute of Chicago

British Museum, London

Dōshisha University, Kyoto

Edoardo Chiossone Museum of Oriental Art, Genoa

Kyoto Women’s University

Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York

Musées royaux d’art et d'histoire, Brussels

Museum Volkenkunde, Leiden

Osaka Prefectural Nakanoshima Library

Tokyo National Museum

Yamato bunkoprinting:

Honolulu Museum of Art

Museum of Fine Arts, Boston

Nagoya University Library

National Diet Library, Tokyo

[1] Ehon miyako zōshi is the preferred transliteration of the title.

[2] Matsudaira 1977.

[3] Matsudaira 1988.

[4] The ehon rui shomoku listing sixty-three titles points to the Kikuya’s (copyright) activity around the early An’ei era (1772–1781).

Ehon miyako sōshi