Distant View of Azuma Bridge and Kinryuzan Temple

The gunwale, pillars and rolled-up blinds of a roofed boat fill the foreground. At the left edge the sleeve of a woman's kimono and a hairpin peek in. Beyond the boat the Sumida River spreads, with Azuma Bridge at left, Mount Fuji behind it, and at right the five-story pagoda and main hall roof of Sensoji. Cherry petals drift from the sky down to the river.

The bold composition places the boat large in front, almost hiding the figures, and makes the famous places beyond appear small. The pale color of the plain-wood boat and the deep indigo of the river separate clearly, and falling petals spread the air of spring across the whole picture.

Azuma Bridge was a bridge on the Sumida River built in 1774 (An'ei 3) that linked Asakusa and Mukojima. Kinryuzan is the mountain name of Sensoji. Hiring a roofed boat and viewing blossoms from the river was a great spring pleasure for Edo's people.

This print belongs to the Spring section. The conceit of evoking the splendor of boating by only the edge of a kimono, without showing the faces of the people, is considered one of the series' witty expressions.