The Newly Opened Port of Yokohama in Kanagawa Prefecture (Kanagawa Yokohama shinkaikōzu)

Utagawa (Gountei) Sadahide

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The port of Yokohama officially opened in July 1859, a year after the Tokugawa shogunate concluded trade agreements with the United States, Russia, the Netherlands, England, and France. The homes in the expatriate community were decorated initially in Japanese style, but residents soon re-created their familiar surroundings. Within a month of the port’s opening there were numerous Japanese businesses in operation, including local merchants and entrepreneurs encouraged by the Japanese government. Sadahide’s print shows the busy Honchō street, with a branch of the Echigoya kimono store, owned by the Mitsui family.

Asian Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The Met's collection of Asian art—more than 35,000 objects, ranging in date from the third millennium B.C. to the twenty-first century—is one of the largest and most comprehensive in the world. Each of the many civilizations of Asia is represented by outstanding works, providing an unrivaled experience of the artistic traditions of nearly half the world.

Metropolitan Museum of Art