- New Year Greeting (Year of the Rabbit) -

- New Year Greeting (Year of the Rabbit) -

Unichi Hiratsuka

6919

$ 51.00

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This charming small-format woodblock print by Unichi Hiratsuka (1895–1997) features a design created for a New Year's card. Printed on traditional washi paper and hand-signed in pencil below the image, it exemplifies Hiratsuka's celebrated mastery of bold black-and-white woodblock printing, achieving remarkable visual impact through its simple yet expressive composition.

The design features a famous ancient brick tile fragment depicting a rabbit and a frog facing one another. The rabbit is shown pounding the elixir of immortality with a mortar and pestle, illustrating the legendary Moon Rabbit (Tsuki no Usagi) from Chinese and Japanese folklore. Frogs were also traditionally believed to inhabit the moon, making this an auspicious and symbolic motif for the New Year.

The printed inscriptions read "Sento Toyaku" ("The Moon Rabbit Pounding Medicine"), "Keifuku" ("Joyous Blessings"), and "Tsuchinoto Gantan," referring to New Year's Day of the Earth Rabbit year (1939, Shōwa 14).

Please note: Although modern Japanese is generally written horizontally from left to right, the inscriptions in this print follow the prewar convention of being read from right to left.

Technique: Woodblock
Paper size: 8¼ × 5½ inches (21 × 14 cm)
Sheet number: N/A
Date: 1939 (Shōwa 14)
Signed: Hand-signed in pencil below the image.
Condition: Very good condition. There is a natural, slightly raised line in the lower margin of the paper, which will be completely concealed with matting and does not affect the image area.

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Collections: ALL PRINTS, Animals, Japanese (Cultural images), Mini Prints, New Arrivals, Only Available prints, Sosaku Hanga, Unichi Hiratsuka (1985 - 1997)

- New Year Greeting (Year of the Rabbit) -

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