Shiba Shinmei Shrine and Zojoji Temple

Women wearing hand towels and hats walk together along the wide road in the foreground. One looks back and seems to be chatting lively. At the far left stands a group of monks in yellow hats and robes, and in the back can be seen a pine grove atop a stone wall, the roof of a shrine topped with chigi, and a red gate at left.

Figures are placed large on the broad gray road, against a background of green woods and white sky. The contrast between the women's red and green kimono and the monks' yellow draws the eye.

Shiba Shinmei (today's Shiba Daijingu) is a shrine to the deity of Ise, and many people worshipped there in place of making the Ise pilgrimage; teahouses and souvenir shops lined its approach. Neighboring Zojoji was the family temple of the Tokugawa shoguns, and this whole area was one of Edo's foremost pilgrimage destinations. The party depicted is thought to be visitors from the provinces sightseeing in Edo.

The composition, which draws the pilgrims large and pushes the famous shrine and temple into the background, turns attention to the pleasures of those visiting famous sights. Though it is an added print, it is a picture that vividly conveys life in the city of Edo.