Wakasa Province: Fishing Boat Netting Flatfish

A fishing boat with a large sail occupies the picture from right to center, and fishermen in broad hats huddle together on deck. Nets are lowered diagonally into the sea from both sides of the boat, and flatfish and crabs are drawn in the water in the foreground. More sailboats float in the distance, and rows of houses and mountains can be seen on the far shore.

The sky below is tinted pink, and the sea shifts from pale green in the foreground to indigo offshore. Showing even the fish and nets beneath the surface is unusual in this series, which often depicts famous scenery, and the print turns its attention to the act of fishing itself.

The sea of Wakasa has long been a rich fishing ground, and fish caught there were salted and carried to Kyoto along a route later called the Saba Kaido (Mackerel Road). Wakasa flatfish were especially renowned as a local specialty, and the choice of fishing rather than a famous site as the subject is thought to have been meant to convey this specialty.

No place name appears in the picture, and it is not known which bay is depicted. The National Diet Library also holds an impression with the same composition, and the Art Institute of Chicago owns two. The lively fishermen on the boat and the quiet fish in the water are layered in one picture.