A Portrait of the Highest Rank Courtesan, Hanaogi

The woman depicted in this ukiyo-e is Hanaogi IV, one of the highest rank courtesans of Edo period. She belonged to the Ogi-ya pleasure quarter of Yoshiwara, but she ran away with her lover after this print was published. Ukiyo-e were usually mass-printed, however, so far, no other pieces that were printed using the entirely same woodblock as this have been found. Our museum also has a tobacco tray and kiseru (Japanese pipe) related to Hanaogi.