Torii Kotondo Kamisuki Woodblock Print, ca. 1930
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GUEST:
I'm hoping it's a woodblock print.
APPRAISER:
Mm-hmm?
GUEST:
A friend of mine gave me, or let me choose, two. And these prints were given to her by her aunt, who had a friend that had a friend that worked in the embassy during World War II.
APPRAISER:
Ah.
GUEST:
So they were exchanged, I, we were told, for food, medicines, or whatever.
APPRAISER:
Yeah, yeah.
GUEST:
She was given a, a, a fairly good-sized stack of all kinds.
APPRAISER:
Mm-hmm.
GUEST:
And she told me I could pick two. And this was my favorite.
APPRAISER:
Oh, you did well.
GUEST:
Oh, good. (both laugh)
APPRAISER:
You know what it is?
GUEST:
I think it's a woodblock.
APPRAISER:
Yes, it is. A woodblock print.
GUEST:
I'm hoping-- that's what we were told.
APPRAISER:
Yes, woodblock print.
GUEST:
Okay.
APPRAISER:
But, uh, um, not traditional one. It's an early 20th century...
GUEST:
Ooh.
APPRAISER:
...called sosaku-hanga. So the, uh, artist, Kotondo, is very famous.
GUEST:
Okay.
APPRAISER:
And all the print collectors like him. His, um, last name was Torii.
GUEST:
Okay.
APPRAISER:
And he's, um, famous, um, maker, famous, uh, printmaker, making, uh, posters for kabuki. Also, uh, he did bijin-ga, meaning "beautiful women prints." It's very popular.
GUEST:
That's where this comes from, yeah, okay.
APPRAISER:
Yes and he worked in Tokyo. And it's signed here, Kotondo. Here-- it says its artist's name and the artist's name in a seal. It's dated Showa, Showa-- fourth of Showa. So that's around 1930s.
GUEST:
Okay.
APPRAISER:
And she's combing her hair, actually, right?
GUEST:
Yeah.
APPRAISER:
You can see. Yes.
GUEST:
Yeah, long hair.
APPRAISER:
Yes, yeah, long hair. So the title is, it's embossed.
GUEST:
Oh! Yes, it is!
APPRAISER:
Can you see?
GUEST:
I see, I never saw that before.
APPRAISER:
Says "Kamisuki," meaning, uh, "Combing Hair."
GUEST:
Huh? Never saw that.
APPRAISER:
Wonderful, yes. Yes.
GUEST:
And I called it "The Girl With a Comb."
APPRAISER:
When they do a block, it's not one. You have to make several.
GUEST:
Oh.
APPRAISER:
You have to do the key block, which is just black outline, and then you have to do red, the lips, and yellow for the comb.
GUEST:
Jeez.
APPRAISER:
You see? So you probably have to do four, five different blocks.
GUEST:
Oh, wow.
APPRAISER:
Japanese prints are not numbered, yeah.
GUEST:
Oh, okay.
APPRAISER:
But they probably made about 200. So, yeah, I have seen this, it's one of my favorite.
GUEST:
Oh, you're kidding.
APPRAISER:
So I was surprised to see it in, uh...
GUEST:
I have looked, I have gone on the computer. I have never found it.
APPRAISER:
Oh, you haven't? Yeah, okay.
GUEST:
No, never saw it before, again.
APPRAISER:
Oh, I see. Yes, and you probably wonder how much that would be, 'cause you didn't pay for it, right? You picked. (chuckles) What do you think?
GUEST:
$500?
APPRAISER (laughs): No, much more.
GUEST:
Ooh.
APPRAISER (laughing): Yeah.
GUEST:
No, no...
APPRAISER:
Um, I think in a shop, they could go for... It's a good condition, so it could go for maybe $4,000?
GUEST(gasps): Oh, my gosh! (laughs) No!
APPRAISER:
On a good day, $5,000 or more.
GUEST:
No idea-- none.
APPRAISER:
Yeah, yes, yeah, yeah.
GUEST:
Wow.
APPRAISER:
But anyway, if you wait, the, the market is very good for these Japanese prints, so it might go up in prices.
GUEST:
Wow.
APPRAISER:
So I'll see you in five years. (both laugh)
GUEST:
Yeah, oh, that's exciting.
APPRAISER:
Isn't that?
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