The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of June 15, 2026

A color woodblock print depicts two people with light skin tones wading through shallow water. On our left, a taller figure in a striped tan and red robe looks down, right hand held near their chin. On our right, a smaller figure in a striped blue and gray robe looks up, carrying a white bundle. Japanese calligraphy and red seals float above a background of dark, silhouetted trees and swirling water.

Third Print from A Low Tide Pentaptych

c. 1830

Utagawa Kuniyoshi

(Japanese, 1797–1861)
Japan, Edo period (1615–1868)
color woodblock print from a pentaptych
21.2 x 18.5 cm (8 3/8 x 7 5/16 in.)
Gift of Mr. and Mrs. J. H. Wade 1916.1108.c
Location: 235A Japanese

Description

This is one of five surimono, privately commissioned prints, making up an image of people collecting sea life at low tide. Ten witty poems, written by members of a poetry circle, appear across the upper part of the composition, with two poems on each print. Based in Edo (now Tokyo), the group was led by Hisakataya Misora (active 1810s–30s), who wrote four of the poems. This composition may have been printed in April, which was considered the best time for beachcombing.
  • ?–1916
    Mr. Jeptha Homer Wade II [1857–1926] and Mrs. Ellen Garretson Wade [1859–1917], Cleveland, OH, given to the Cleveland Museum of Art
    1916–
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • Later Japanese Art Gallery Rotation (Gallery 113). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (July 13-November 17, 2004).
    Later Japanese Art Gallery Rotation (Gallery 113). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (August 25-December 2, 2003).
  • {{cite web|title=Third Print from A Low Tide Pentaptych|url=false|author=Utagawa Kuniyoshi|year=c. 1830|access-date=15 June 2026|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1916.1108.c