Okamoto Ippei, Maekawa Sempan, Hiratsuka Un’ichi, et al. Tōkaidō gojūsantsugi manga emaki . Jô Ge. [Tōkyō : Chūō Bijutsu Kyōkai, 1920s. In wooden box, title on box: Manga Tōkaidō, nikuhitsu 2 scrolls, each over 30 feet long and 10″ high. Graphic Arts collection GAX 2014- in process

This Tokaido scroll set was hand-painted in an edition of approximately 250-300 copies by 18 members of the Tokyo Manga Association. The images are based on a trip probably made in 1920-1921 and the paintings must have been finished soon after.

The artists involved include some famous names: Mizushima Nihou, Kondô Koichiro, Sempan and Un’ichi, among others. For Princeton University Library, it is significant that Okamoto Ippei (1886-1948) was involved because we know that Albert Einstein met him in 1922 and admired his work enough to purchase his book. The artist reciprocated by drawing a portrait of Einstein inside the volume (See: Ando Hiroshige’s Fifty-Three Stations on the Tokaido (1852). GAX Oversize 2009-0496Q).

For more information on the many prints, drawings, and books about the Tokaido Road, see the Princeton University Art Museum exhibition:

http://www.princetoninfo.com/index.php?option=com_us1more&Itemid=6&key=03-16-2011Art