Hokusai's 53 Stations of the Tōkaidō 1802 is something completely different from his first square edition 1801.

Hokusai here employs the horizontal "landscape" format and abt the double size of his square 1801 edition.

In this series Hokusai focus on wonderful folkloric scenes of ordinary people going about their work, in addition to the travel scenes.

Hokusai also begins to develop the landscapes that were to become a standard for later generations of Tōkaidō series.

Hokusai develops the concept of the Tōkaidō print from cartoon to folklore and the beginning of landscape. He builds on a b/w guide, Tōkaidō meisho zue from 1797, ISBN 9781956773316.

It was a great and early contribution to the growing Tōkaidō literature, which Hokusai dominated for some 30 years.