Limited-Edition Pokemon Prints Now Available, Cost $450

Limited-edition, super-rare Pokemon woodblock prints are now available through the Pokemon Center shop.

The two prints feature first-generation Pokemon in Kanto locales from Red and Blue. The first, Port of Vermillion City, is based on a landscape from Hiroshige Utagawa's 53 Stations of the Tokaido. The second print, Silence Bridge, shows a battle with a newly-awoken Snorlax on the bridge along Route 12; it's inspired by Yoshitoshi Tsukioka's Gojo Bridge, an Episode from the Life of Yoshitsune, which depicts a battle between two samurai. See the prints below.

Gallery

The prints are made in Japan using the traditional ukiyo-e style, which dates back to the 17th century. A sculptor carves an artist's image into a series of wooden boards--one for each color of ink--and those boards are used to make a print on traditional handmade paper.

Each print costs $450. Because of the handiwork involved and the limitations of the woodblock technique, only 50 prints of each will be available.

In other Pokemon news, Pokemon Go developer Niantic hinted that Legendary Pokemon will be available in the game this summer.