Inaba Province: Karo and Koyama

A single pine on the hill in the foreground runs from the bottom to the top of the picture's center. Right beside it a cherry tree in full bloom spreads its branches, and the roofs of houses show at the foot of the hill. Beyond the trees spreads blue water dotted with several small islands, with gently sloping green capes interlocking.

The reddish pine trunk, the pale pink blossoms, the indigo of the water, and the green of the hill are clearly separated, and the area near the horizon is shaded in a red like a sunset. Setting a large tree in the foreground so that the distant view shows through it is a device often seen in Hiroshige's late views of famous places. The small islands in the lake are drawn in varied sizes, giving a sense of the expanse of water.

Karo in the title is thought to refer to the harbor of Garo facing the Sea of Japan, and Koyama to Lake Koyama. Lake Koyama is a lake cut off from the sea by a sandbar, lying west of the castle town of Tottori, and in the Edo period it was a scenic spot of Inaba together with the harbor of Garo.

This print is placed after Tajima in the series. Impressions are also held by the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Tokyo National Museum, and the National Diet Library's impression has the same composition. With its large cherry blossoms in full bloom in the foreground, this is a print in which the brightness of spring stands out even within the series.