Kunisada: Prince Genji and Female Abalone Divers at the Seashore Triptych

Artist: Utagawa Kunisada Title: The Shining Prince Amusing Himself at the Seashore: Number III (Mitsuuji isobe-asobi, sono san).  Date: 1859 The Shining Prince Amusing Himself at the Seashore: Number III (Mitsuuji isobe-asobi, sono san). The “Shining Prince”, Genji, enjoys watching female awabi (abalone) divers at work, this time from the shore. He is richly attired, as always, and seems about depart in his luxury palanquin, seen lower right. He holds a folding fan in his right hand. His female attendant kneels, and holds his sword respectfully with a cloth, being sure not to touch the lacquer sheath directly. She is pointing towards the four abalone divers, at left.  On the shore, one diver has put a tie-dye patterned blue robe over shoulders, and seems to be resting after a dive. A  second diver is combing out her hair, either preparing to dive or just having finished a dive. Right next to a rocky outcropping we see a third diver, toweling herself dry with a hand-towel. Their compani