Weavers’ Children in the Silkworm House

(Sanka shokushi no zu, 蚕家織子之図)

Publisher: Sano-ya Kihei

1842

This series shows children performing the various tasks in the manufacture of silk. It is listed as number 116 in Kuniyoshi by Basil William Robinson (Victoria and Albert Museum, London, 1961). Some of the variations in this series can be explained by the fact that it was banned by the censors in November, 1842 for being a polyptych (tsuzuki-e, 続き絵). The following month, the ban was clarified to apply only to polyptychs of more than three images. The prints were recut with the continuous numbering of 1-10 removed and re-formed into groups of 3, 3, 3, and 1. The sheets are each about 14 by 10 inches (36 by 25 centimeters), a size known as ôban. I am grateful to Robert Pryor for his contributions to this series.

	Number: 1 (dai-ichi, 第壹) Title: Picture of beginning of silkworm rearing Description: A boy carrying two baskets of mulberry leaves on a pole on his shoulders while two other children prepare the silk worm eggs
	Another state without any purple
	Preparatory sketch for the above print
	Number: 2 (dai-ni, 第二) Title: Picture of picking mulberry leaves Description: Two children harvesting mulberry leaves
	Number: 3 (dai-san, 第三) Title: Picture of cutting mulberry leaves and feeding silkworms Description: One child is cutting mulberry leaves with a cleaver while two others are feeding the leaves to silkworms.
	An alternate state of the above design
	Number: 4 (dai-yon, 第四) Title: Picture of sleeping before fifth ecdysis (molting) Description: A girl is using a feather to clean a tray of ‘sleeping’ silkworms while two boys are standing behind her with mulberry leaves Text: 蚕第四度目の休おば大眠ともにわの休ともいふなり　追付起出べき時をうかゞひ其用意をなす
	Another state with heaven (ten, 天) replacing the number four, indication that this is the 1^st in the sequence heaven, earth, and people
	Number: 5 (dai-go, 第五) Title: Picture of silkworm of fifth instar (stage between two moltings) Description: Three children standing with two baskets of mulberry leaves
NO IMAGE AVAILABLE	Another state with earth (chi, 地) replacing the number five, indication that this is the 2^nd in the sequence heaven, earth, and people
	Number: 6 (dai-roku, 第六) Title: Picture of cocoons Description: Three children–one holding a tray of cocoons and another kneeling by a tray on the floor
	Another state of the above design without any purple
	Another state with people (hito, 人) replacing the number six, indication that this is the 3^rd in the sequence heaven, earth, and people
	Another state of the above design without any purple
	Number: 7 (dai-shichi, 第七) Title: Picture of silk moth and silkworm eggs production Description: Three children kneeling on the floor watching silkworm moths fly away
	Another state with pine (matsu, 松) replacing the number seven, indication that this is the 1^st in the sequence pine, bamboo, and plum
	Another state of the above design
	Number: 8 (dai-hachi, 第八) Title: Picture of the making of raw silk by hand Description: Three children extracting raw silk from cocoons Text: 生まゆを塩にひたす事あり　大き成つぼの内底に竹のすを入其上に桐の葉を敷又其うへにまゆを敷ならべ又その上桐のはを敷て塩をふりかけよくふたをして上を泥にてぬりふさぎ七日にして取出し釜に入てわくにかけ
	Another state with bamboo (take, 竹) replacing the number eight, indication that this is the 2^nd in the sequence pine, bamboo, and plum
	Another state of the above design
	Number: 9 (dai-ku, 第九) Title: Picture of the making of silk floss by hand Description: Three children around a small stove making silk floss
	Another state of the above design with green
	Another state with plum (ume, 梅) replacing the number nine, indication that this is the 3^rd in the sequence pine, bamboo, and plum
	Another state of the above design without any purple
	Number: 10 (dai-ju, 第十) Title: Picture of the hand weaving of silk fabric Description: Two children at a loom
	Another state with single sheet (hitohira, 一枚) replacing the number ten, indication that this print is not part of a polyptych

“Robinson” refers to listing of the series in Kuniyoshi by Basil William Robinson (Victoria and Albert Museum, London, 1961).

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