One Hundred Famous Views of Edo No.59Ryogoku Bridge and Okawabata (large riverbank)

Before the Great Fire of Meireki in 1657, there was no bridge across the Sumida River at Ryogoku. Countless people who were driven to the bank of the river and could not escape the fire were killed there. In 1660, in order to prevent a recurrence, the Tokugawa shogunate ordered the building of a bridge across the river and the provision of squares at both ends of the bridge to act as firebreaks. The bridge connected the two provinces of Musashi, west of the river, and Shimosa, east of the river, and was thus called Ryogoku Bridge, literally “two provinces bridge”.
Shown in this print is the third version of the bridge, constructed in 1839 and being 174 metres in length and 7 metres wide. Numerous people are seen crossing the bridge. The squares at both ends of the bridge were named Hirokoji, meaning “broad alley”, and were two of the most thriving quarters in Edo city. Hiroshige here depicts the square on the west bank of the river, which was full of people both day and night. Along the riverbank stood stalls made of reeds with short curtains hanging from their eaves and which specialized in selling tea to passersby. In most cases, the owner of the stall retained beautiful maidservants in order to allure guests into the stall. In the morning, markets were opened in the square and fruit and vegetables were sold on straw mats laid on the ground. In the afternoon, the produce would be cleared away and, in its place, various shabby booths made of rush mats were erected to accommodate various amusements such as kabuki plays, humorous storytellers, acrobats, archery and restaurants. When evening drew near, these booths were quickly removed and new stalls put in their place. The new stalls, which had benches inside and were lit by candles, served customers barley tea and a sweet alcoholic drink made from fermented rice.
Both banks of the river near the bridge were called Okawabata, literally “large riverbank”, and the traffic on the river was most congested around the bridge. On the east bank of the river and upstream from the bridge stood warehouses belonging to the shogunate. They are seen on the opposite side of the river with bridges at the north end of the houses.
( Written by Teruaki Hori )