Evening Bell at the End of Spring, from the series Eight Views for the Four Seasons

In a beautiful scene of spring, two women and an adolescent boy stroll home after viewing cherry blossoms. The youth carries a branch of blossoms, probably to use later in flower arrangements. What might be a scene of everyday life is elevated by the title, which refers to a series of poetic themes that originated in classical Chinese poetry, Eight Views of Xiaoxiang, a region in southern China.

The specific theme referenced here is “Evening Bell at Qingliang Temple 煙寺晚鐘,” modified here as “Evening Bell at the End of Spring.” Edo residents would have assumed the contemporary local parallel to be either the bell at Kan’eiji in Ueno or Sensōji temple at Asakusa, near the embankment of the Sumidagawa.