1860

The Pleasure Quarters at Yokohama near Kanagawa

Japanese, c. 1807 - 1873

Located amid undeveloped rice paddies behind the town of Yokohama, at a discrete distance from the heavily trafficked seafront, the Miyozaki pleasure district was reached by a narrow causeway. Like Yokohama, which was surrounded by water and accessible only by sentry-guarded bridges, Miyozaki was encircled by a moat and had to be entered over a bridge through a single gate, as shown in the right foreground of this print. This configuration facilitated the innkeepers' supervision of the hundreds of courtesans who lived in Miyozaki, who were strongly discouraged from leaving the district.