Hiroshige (1797) Auction Prices and Value Guide

Hiroshige (1797) auction prices are tracked in Appraisily's artist market index, with source-directory coverage of 12,800 records. Use this page to review sold-lot activity, market context, and valuation factors before requesting a formal appraisal.

Hiroshige (1797) auction prices: quick answer

Hiroshige (1797) auction prices depend on medium, size, date, condition, provenance, edition details, attribution confidence, and recent comparable auction sales.

Artist
Hiroshige (1797)
Source records
12,800
Market update
2026-02-06

Artist context

About Hiroshige (1797)

Utagawa Hiroshige (1797–1858), born Andō Tokutarō in Edo (modern Tokyo), is regarded as the last great master of the Japanese ukiyo-e woodblock print tradition. A member of the prolific Utagawa school, Hiroshige transformed the landscape genre within a tradition previously dominated by portraits of actors and courtesans. His most celebrated series — The Fifty-three Stations of the Tōkaidō, One Hundred Famous Views of Edo, and The Sixty-nine Stations of the Kiso Kaidō — captured the Japanese countryside, famous highways, and seasonal beauty with poetic sensitivity and innovative compositional techniques, including dramatic use of bokashi color gradation. After his death the ukiyo-e tradition rapidly declined amid Japan's Meiji-era modernization, yet Hiroshige's landscapes went on to deeply influence Western artists such as Monet and Van Gogh during the Japonism movement of the late nineteenth century.

Ukiyo-eUtagawa schoolLate Edo period (Bakumatsu)Woodblock prints (ukiyo-e)PaintingsIllustrated booksLandscapesFamous views of Edo (Tokyo)Travel stations and highway scenesSeasonal and atmospheric effects (rain, snow, moonlight)

Common works and media

Collectors most frequently encounter single-sheet oban-format (approximately 36 × 24 cm) woodblock prints from Hiroshige's major landscape series, including horizontal compositions from The Fifty-three Stations of the Tōkaidō and vertical compositions from One Hundred Famous Views of Edo. Triptychs, illustrated books (ehon), and paintings in ink and color on silk or paper also appear on the market. Subjects range from highway stations, mountain passes, and famous views of Edo to birds-and-flowers (kachō-ga) and atmospheric scenes depicting rain, snow, and moonlight.

Market and appraisal context

Hiroshige's auction market is deep, liquid, and global. The Appraisily auction-record index documents 447 lots with 363 priced results spanning from May 2008 through March 2026, distributed across at least ten named auction houses including Sotheby's, Bonhams, Lempertz, Piasa, Beaussant-Lefevre, Floating World Auctions, Woodblock Prints World, Bruce Teleky Inc., Revere Auctions, and Thomaston Place Auction Galleries. Price dispersion is exceptionally wide: the recorded range runs from $10 at the low end (likely later reprints or poor-condition impressions) to $180,000 at the high end (presumably complete series sets, paintings, or superb early impressions of iconic compositions). The interquartile spread ($220–$1,300, median $500) reflects the typical single-print market for individual oban-format woodblock prints in fair to good condition. Liquidity remains stable year-over-year, with 64 lots recorded in the most recent 12 months and 66 in the prior period. Premium results cluster at Sotheby's London, where single iconic prints such as 'Sudden Shower over Shin-Ōhashi Bridge and Atake' achieved £15,600 and 'Awa Province: Naruto Whirlpools' reached £22,800 in July 2024, while a complete Vertical Tōkaidō set realized £28,800 in November 2024. At regional houses, individual prints from standard series typically trade in the $300–$500 range.

Auction categories and appraisal factors

Common auction categories

  • Woodblock prints (ukiyo-e)
  • Paintings
  • Illustrated books

Value drivers

  1. Series and edition: Prints from The Fifty-three Stations of the Tōkaidō and One Hundred Famous Views of Edo are the most commonly encountered at auction; early impressions from the original Hoeidō or Uoya Eikichi editions carry a significant premium over later reprints
  2. Impression quality: Early impressions with sharp lines, vibrant color, and full bokashi (gradation) are substantially more valuable than later or posthumous impressions with worn blocks and faded color
  3. Condition: Untrimmed margins, absence of worm holes, no fading or backing, and intact centerfold (for oban diptychs and triptychs) are key condition factors
  4. Subject rarity: Iconic compositions such as 'Sudden Shower Over Shin-Ōhashi Bridge and Atake' or 'Plum Garden at Kameyama' command stronger results than lesser-known views
  5. Provenance and attribution: Prints with documented provenance from established collections or annotations by recognized scholars carry additional weight
  6. Impression and block state: Early impressions with sharp keyblock lines, vibrant unfaded color, and full bokashi gradation are worth multiples of later impressions pulled from worn blocks. Publisher seals and censor marks help date the impression.

Appraisal caveats

  • Hiroshige's prints were produced in large numbers, and many later editions, recarvings, and reproductions exist. Attribution to Hiroshige I (1797–1858) must be distinguished from Hiroshige II (1826–1869) and Hiroshige III (1842–1894), who used similar signatures and styles.
  • Market value varies dramatically between early original impressions and later reprints; professional assessment of impression, condition, and block state is essential for accurate appraisal.
  • Over 12,800 auction results are recorded for this artist in the Invaluable/Appraisily database, reflecting high volume and broad availability across major and regional auction houses.
  • The recorded price range ($10–$180,000) reflects extreme dispersion driven by impression quality, condition, series rarity, and format. The median of $500 is a useful midpoint but does not predict value for any specific print without assessment of these factors.

Evidence

Sources for artist context

This source-grounded artist context passed Appraisily's promotion threshold: high confidence, strong sources.

Source-grounded artist Markdown

Data basis

This page is built from Appraisily's public auction market index. Private transactions, incomplete sale feeds, and attribution changes may not be fully represented.

LLM-readable Markdown summary for Hiroshige (1797)

LLM summary index · LLM full index

Artist value FAQ

How much is Hiroshige (1797) worth?

Comparable public auction sales are the best starting point, but final value depends on the specific artwork, condition, size, medium, provenance, and attribution confidence.

Can Appraisily value my Hiroshige (1797) artwork?

Yes. Appraisily can review photos, dimensions, signatures, condition, provenance, and comparable market data to prepare a current valuation.