Posted by J. Noel Chiappa on January 08, 2002 at 22:35:46:
In Reply to: Sharaku_Missing Censor-Approval/Publisher Marks posted by Erik S. on January 08, 2002 at 16:47:28:
> further information regarding one of three Japanese prints that my
> parents had acquired while living in Paris shortly after the war. I
> have found the artist/title (Sharaku - Iwai Hashiro IV as Shigenori)
> but notice than my print doesn't bear the bottom two marks which I
> believe are censor-approval and publisher's marks.
The best illustration I can quickly find of this print (in Henderson and
Ledoux, "Sharaku's Japanese Theatre Prints") is rather dark, and the
markings don't show up well, but the bottom two (on the left hand side,
underneath the signature) do seem to be the kiwame ("approved") censor
seal, and the publisher's seal (Tsuta-ya, who published all of Sharaku's
prints).
> Does anyone know any significance of missing these two marks?
Your print is almost certainly a later reproduction. Original Sharakus are
extraordinarily rare, and extremely valuable; reproductions are very common.
Noel