Description: Sparrow on a sheaf of rice Original woodblock print from Hana Kurabe, published around the 1880's. Signature: Zeshin. Seal: Ze (是) The series Hana Kurabe (Comparisons of Flowers) came into being as a loose series, consists of 120 pages in total and was published by the press Shûgyokudo in Tôkyô between 1875 and 1890. A complete edition was published around 1890 in the form of ten albums with twelve woodblock prints each. The series' title is not noted on the individual woodblock prints. Only the covers of the album bore the respective label including other marginalia. Complete albums, however, are rare, since they were mostly taken apart and the pages sold individually. The bold, sometimes only sketchily set brush strokes in a fluid Shijô style render the surimono-like drawings very expressive and lend the motifs an exceptional reality. They appear like painted haiku, only complete when experienced by the observer and so refined in their printing, that those who do not know better often think they are original drawings. Condition: Good condition, one tear in the top left Provenance: From an Austrian private collection