Horie and Nekozane

A river flows into the distance in a broad curve through the center of the picture. Small thatched houses line both banks, ringed by pine groves. A single small boat floats on the river, a flock of birds sits on the sandbar in the foreground, and in the grass at right a man crouches pulling the rope of a net. The sea and a white Mount Fuji can be seen in the distance.

The deep indigo of the river, the green of the banks, and the yellow roofs of the houses line up vividly, while the red of sunset stains the horizon. The viewpoint looking down from above brings village, river, and sea into one picture.

Horie and Nekozane were fishing villages facing Edo Bay, which gathered shellfish, seaweed, and fish and carried them to Edo. Bird-catching with nets is thought also to have been practiced, conveying the peaceful life of a watery district. They lay on the delta at the mouth of the Edo River, with waterways running crisscross through the villages.

This is the last of the three prints depicting famous places in Chiba, and one of the earliest prints in the series, from the second month of Ansei 3. Distant Fuji gives depth to the quiet scenery of a watery district with little sign of people.