parcheesi board: brick tower on street with people looking out of nearly every window; kites flying in sky; man hanging from balloon in UL throwing confetti; people walking, talking, carrying balloons on the street below; sky is richly colored blue, white, and red; flap at ULC with man descending in balloon throwing confetti placed over similar figure on ULC of print

Sugoroku of Looking Out from Ryōunkaku, Asakusa Park, November 1890

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Sugoroku is a popular Japanese board game played similarly to “Snakes and Ladders.” Edo-period publishers produced Sugoroku boards like this one in a variety of themes, everything from classical literature to erotica. Here, the game board is formed by a famous building, the Ryōunkaku, with players progressing from bottom to top along its windows, which are each numbered. Ryōunkaku was a twelve-story skyscraper—Japan’s first—constructed in 1890 in Tokyo’s Asakusa district. It was one of the city’s most visible landmarks until it was destroyed by the Great Kantō earthquake of 1923.

Details
Title
Sugoroku of Looking Out from Ryōunkaku, Asakusa Park
Artist Life
1848 - 1920
Role
Artist
Accession Number
2015.79.235
Catalogue Raisonne
Murase, Art through a Lifetime, no. 505
Curator Approved

This record has been reviewed by our curatorial staff but may be incomplete. These records are frequently revised and enhanced. If you notice a mistake or have additional information about this object, please email collectionsdata@artsmia.org.

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parcheesi board: brick tower on street with people looking out of nearly every window; kites flying in sky; man hanging from balloon in UL throwing confetti; people walking, talking, carrying balloons on the street below; sky is richly colored blue, white, and red; flap at ULC with man descending in balloon throwing confetti placed over similar figure on ULC of print