Picture of Steam Locomotives Traveling (Jokisha rikudo tsuko no zu) - Utagawa Yoshitora

A detailed 1872 woodblock triptych by Utagawa Yoshitora depicting early steam locomotives in Meiji-era Japan.

This woodblock print by Utagawa Yoshitora captures the arrival of railway technology in Meiji-era Japan. Produced in 1872, the year the first railway line opened between Shimbashi and Yokohama, the work belongs to the Yokohama-e genre. These prints documented the rapid modernisation and foreign influence entering Japanese ports during the late nineteenth century.

The composition is a triptych, showing two steam locomotives pulling passenger carriages along a coastal track. The artist depicts the trains with a degree of mechanical curiosity, focusing on the wheels, boilers, and chimneys. Passengers are visible through the carriage windows, dressed in a mix of traditional Japanese attire and Western-style clothing, reflecting the social shifts of the period. In the background, the sea is filled with sailing ships and steamers, further emphasising the theme of technological progress and international trade.

Yoshitora uses a clear, graphic style typical of the period. The colour palette includes muted earth tones for the machinery, contrasted against the blue of the water and the distinctive pink-toned sky, a common feature in prints of this era. The lines are precise, defining the structural elements of the trains while maintaining the flat, decorative quality associated with traditional Japanese printmaking. This piece serves as a visual record of a specific moment in Japanese history, documenting the transition from feudal isolation to an industrialised society.