Lot Essay
There are four states of this print. The first is a calendar print with the seals of the block cutter, Sekine Kaei, and date markings on the man's kesa and the woman's sash (see Waterhouse, Bosuton bijutsukan/Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, supplemental vol. 1, Harunobu, in Ukiyo-e shuka [Tokyo: Shogakukan, 1982], pl. 17). The second state lacks seals and the numbers on the robe have been removed. In the third state the women's heads are recut and the symbols on the sash removed. In the last state the courtesan's sash is printed with a check pattern (see Yoshida, Harunobu zenshu [Tokyo: Takamizawa Mokuhansha, 1942], no. 73).