[Hand-painted fan design] 

Inouye, Toshio [produced and/or hand-painted by].

Kyōto: Toshio Inouye, [ca. late Meiji to early Shōwa period (1900-20s)?].

A hand-painted draft of an elegant fan design produced by "Toshio Inouye" of Kyoto (probably a fan shop or design studio). The design has been painted on fabric and shows strong Art Nouveau influences; ...

[Hand-painted fan design] 

Inouye, Toshio [produced and/or hand-painted by].

Kyōto: Toshio Inouye, [ca. late Meiji to early Shōwa period (1900-20s)?].

A hand-painted draft of an elegant fan design produced by "Toshio Inouye" of Kyoto (probably a fan shop or design studio). The design has been painted on fabric and shows strong Art Nouveau influences; ...

Hatsugoromo ["First garments"]

Kumagai, Keiun [created by].

Kyōto: Gōmei Gaisha Unsōdō, Meiji 41 [1908].

An album of thirty colour woodblock-printed textile designs produced by the textile artist Kumagai Keiun and the little-known Futaba-kai group. The brief biography of Keiun on p. 28 of the "Ku" section of Dainihon jinbutsushi: ichimei gendai jinmei ...

Hōnen Gokoku Matsuri: Rikai Shinbun ["A Five-Grain Festival for the Abundant Harvest: Understandings of the New Culture"]

Mantei, Ōga [text by]; Seisei [Kawanabe], Kyōsai [illustrated by]. 

Tōkyō: Kobayashi Kiemon, Meiji 5 [1872] - [Meiji 6 (1873)]. 

One of the earliest Kyōsai-Ōga novels, on the importance of agriculture. Steele (2010) notes that ...

Tsutsumimono Orikata Hinagata ["Examples of Ways to Fold Envelopes"]

[Creator unidentified].

[Japan, ca. Meiji period (1868-1911)?].

A collection of 54 samples of papers folded in specific ways for various occasions. Rules for the correct pre ...

Shinpan Ji-amari Shin-monku ["New Ji-amari Phrases, Newly Published"] 

[Creator/s unidentified]. 

Iigura Shinmachi, [Tōkyō]: Fukudaya Kichigorō, [ca. Bunka 7 (1810)?].

Two issues of humorous phrases and jokes, bound in one. Ji-amari refers to poetic compositions in which the typical number of syllables is exceeded. The word monku has an unfortuna ...

[百人一首歌留多
(Hyakunin Isshu Karuta, “Cards of One Hundred Poems by One Hundred Poets”)]

[Keisai, Eisen (illustrated by)].

[Tōkyō]: Shiba Senichi, [ca. 1850-60s].

A complete set of two hundred uncut hyakunin isshu cards (one hundred poem cards and one hundred poet cards) in eight leaves. The publisher and printer was Shiba Senichi (芝泉市), ...

Ishō Sekai ["World of Designs"]

[Sawa], Kyūkō ... [et al.] [illustrated by]; Watanabe, Takijirō [woodblocks cut by].

Tōkyō: Seibikai, Meiji 34 [1901].

Issue 5 of the magazine Ishō Sekai, published by the Seibikai ("The Exquisite Beauty Association"). The eighteen textile designs included were provided by members of the Seibikai, and the woodblocks were cu ...

Kaiunbashi Daiichi Ginkō ["Kaiunbashi Bridge and the First National Bank"]

Kobayashi, Kiyochika [illustrated by].

[Japan: publisher unidentified, ca. early to mid-twentieth century?]. 

A later printing or re-carved edition of arguably Kiyochika's most famous work: a snowy scene featuring the First National Bank and Kaiunbashi Bridge in Tokyo. A se ...

Kanadehon Chūshingura, Dai-Kudanme ["The Treasury of Loyal Retainers: Act Nine"]

Kōchōrō [Utagawa], Kunisada [illustrated by].

[Edo (Tōkyō)]: Yorozuya Kichibē, [ca. Edo period (1830-40s?)].

A scene from Act 9 of Kanadehon Chūshingura, one of Japan's most popular plays, illustrated by Utagawa Kunisada I (Toyokuni III, 1786–1864). The work seems ...

Kanegura Sandaiki ["Three Generations of Treasuries"]

Hattori [Mantei], Ōga [text by]; Seisei [Kawanabe], Kyōsai [illustrated by]. 

Tōkyō: Yamazakiya Seishichi ... [et al.], Meiji 7 [1874].

Three Kyōsai-Ōga zasshi bound in one, complete, on a family's economic struggles revolving around their pawnshop Iseya. The title of the moralistic work on t ...

Kanzeon Reigenki Hyakuban Mokuroku ["Record of the Miracles of Kannon: Index of the One Hundred Pilgrimage Sites"]

Ōju Mantei, Ōga [text by]; [Utagawa], Toyokuni [III], [Utagawa], Hiroshige [II] [illustrated by]. 

[Edo (Tōkyō): Nanden Nisanshō, Ansei 6 (1859)]. 

The index print for a series of nishiki-e listing one hundred temples from three pil ...

Katsuron Gakumon Suzume ["A Vigorous Debate by the Sparrows of Learning"]

Hattori [Mantei], Ōga [text by]; Ōju Seisei [Kawanabe], Kyōsai [illustrated by]. 

Tōkyō: Murakami Jūzō, Yamazaki Seishichi ... [et al], Meiji 8 [1875]. 

The first issue (of three), in two parts, of Ōga's response to Fukuzawa Yukichi's famous work Gakumon no Susume ...

Kishō Shinbun ["Journal of Collected Laughter"]

Hashizume [Baitei], Kinzō [Kinga] [edited by]; Ōju [Tsukioka], Yoshitoshi [illustrated by]. 

[Tōkyō]: Kishōsha, [Meiji 8 (1875)]. 

Issues three, four, and seven of this scarce zasshi produced by the novelist Baitei Kinga and artist Tsukioka Yoshitoshi. Issue three is titled Karikashi Mondō ("Questi ...

木曽路之山川
[Kisoji no Yamakawa, “Mountain River on the Kiso Road”]

[Utagawa], Hiroshige I [illustrated by].

[Japan: unidentified publisher, ca. early to mid-20th century].

A set of three unused postcards delicately woodblock-printed with Hiroshige's famous illustration of the snowy Kiso Valley. Originally printed in 1857, Mountain River o ...

Kokkei Ana-sagashi [Funny Flaw-Finding]

[Utagawa], Yoshimori [illustrated by].

[Tōkyō]: Iseshō [Iseya Shōnosuke], [1864].

A comical woodblock print by Utagawa Yoshimori (1830-1885), introducing seven character flaws across two scenes. The nishiki-e, number five of an indeterminate number of prints in Yoshimori's Kokkei Ana-sagashi series, describes ch ...

Kokkei Usaharashi ["Humorous Distractions"]

Itō, Kyōtō ... [et al.] [text by]. 

Tōkyō: Kokkeidō, Meiji 15 [1882]. 

Issue seven of Kokkei Usaharashi, a magazine of short stories and kyōka, haiku, and dodoitsu poems. The publishing house that produced the magazine, Kokkeidō, was owned by Akiyama Buemon (d. 1900), a pupil of Tsukioka Yoshitoshi and ...

"皇国雷名の諸君見立力競"

[Katsushika?], Masahisa [illustrated by].

Tōkyō : [publisher illegible], Meiji 15 [1882].

An engrossing triptych featuring over three hundred famous people engaged in bouts of kubihiki. Kubihiki was a Japanese game in which a looped string was placed around the necks of two people and a trial of strength would ensue. In this work, cel ...

Kudanzaka Satsuki no yoru ["A night in May at Kudanzaka Hill"]

Kobayashi, Kiyochika [illustrated by].

[Japan: publisher unidentified, ca. early to mid-twentieth century?]. 

A later printing or re-carved edition of Kiyochika's illustration of a rainy night at Kudanzaka. Figures seem to disappear off the edge of the world as they descend the steps i ...

Kutsu no Hiai = This Misery of Boots

Wells, H.G. [original text by]; Ōya, Sōichi [translated by].

Tōkyō : Nihon Febian Kyōkai, Taishō 14 [1925].

A translation by journalist Ōya Sōichi (1900-1970) of a work published in 1907 by the socialist Fabian Society, of which Wells was a member. In the work - an extended edition of an article published in December ...

Kyōji Kozaiku no E, Oteasobi Mono Shinajina [Stationer's Goods for Intricate Handiwork, Playthings, and so on]

Kyōjiya Hikobē-ten [produced by]. 

Kyōto: Kyōjiya Hikobē-ten, [ca. late Edo period (1800-50s?)].

An advertisement for goods produced by a kyōjiya - a specialist in mounting hanging scrolls and installing interior screens but also, as thi ...

Kyōjin Bikkuribako ["The Prideful Person's Box of Inevitable Fear"]

Hattori [Mantei], Ōga [text by]; Seisei [Kawanabe], Kyōsai [illustrated by]. 

Tōkyō: Shōsetsusha Shorin, Yamazakiya Seishichi ... [et al.], Meiji 7 [1874]. 

The first fascicle of a three-issue series produced by Ōga and Kyōsai. The two other issues in the series, Bikkuri Ch� ...

[Kyōka Momochidori ("A Flock of Kyōka Poems")]

[Yanagawa, Shigenobu (illustrated by)]; Shakuyakutei, [Nagane] [preface by].

[Japan: publisher unidentified, ca. 1830s?].

A book of kyōka poems illustrated by Hokusai's pupil and son-in-law Yanagawa Shigenobu (1787–1832), who was known for his surimono and book illustrations. This album features thir ...

Light in darkness = Anchū no kōmyō

Loomis, Henry, Yoshimasu, Takasaburō [text by].

Yokohama: Beikoku Seisho Kaisha, Meiji 39 [1906].

A pamphlet recounting the story of Yoshimasu Takasaburō's conversion to Christianity, by Henry Loomis (1839-1920), a Presbyterian missionary from the US working in Japan. The short work shows through correspondences how ...

Magobē Kakkeiron ["Magobē the Manager"]; Kyōjin Bikkuribako ["The Prideful Person's Box of Inevitable Fear"]

Hattori [Mantei], Ōga [text by]; Seisei [Kawanabe], Kyōsai [illustrated by].

Tōkyō: Yamazaki Seishichi ... [et al.], Meiji 7-8 [1874-1875].

Two Kyōsai-Ōga zasshi bound together by an ex-owner. The first issue in the volume, Magobē Kakkeiron, ...

Makura Jidō: kabukiza shinkyōgen ["Makura Jidō: new kyōgen at the kabuki theatre"]

Kōchōrō [Utagawa Kunisada III] [illustrated by].

[Japan: publisher unidentified, Meiji 25 (1892)?].

A triptych by Utagawa Kunisada III (1848–1920) depicting the eponymous Kiku Jidō (Jidō of the Chrysanthemum, also known as Jidō of the Headrest) from the play Makura Jid ...

Manpō Eitai Shin-zassho: Nihon-zu-iri ["New Miscellany of Countless Eternal Treasures, with a Map of Japan"]

[Tokanshi (selections by)?].

[Japan: publisher unidentified, ca. Bunka 8 (1811)].

This encyclopedic sheet, woodblock-printed on both sides, provides astrological, historical, and geographical information about Japan to the reader. The sheet could be ...

Mitate Hakkei: Yashima Sekishō ["Selection for the Eight Views: Evening Glow at Yashima"]

Ichiyusai [Utagawa], Kuniyoshi [illustrated by].

[Shibamishima-cho, (Tokyo)]: Wakasaya, [1846].

An unusual triptych from Kuniyoshi's Selection for the Eight Views series, featuring a scene from the Battle of Yashima of the warrior monk Benkei peering through ...

Miuchi-zoroi ["Collection of Beauties"]

Kikukawa, Eizan [illustrated by].

[Japan: Iwatoya Kisaburō, ca. Edo period (1800-20s)].

A courtesan adjusts her tortoiseshell hair ornaments in a pocket mirror, tissues tucked under her chin. This print seems to be from a different series than Eizan's similarly named Shoshoku Miuchi-zoroi and Fūryū Miuc ...

Miyako nishiki ["Brocades of the capital"]

[Ueno, Seikō (illustrated by)?]. 

Kyōto: Honda Ichijirō, Meiji 32 (1899)].

A collection of inventive designs by an unidentified artist or artists, previously owned by the acclaimed designer and artist Ueno Seikō (1871-1943). The woodblocks for the prints were carved by Kinoshita Yūnosuke and printed by S ...

Miyako Odori ["The Miyako Dance"]

Kajima, Seizaburō [text by].

Kyōto: Genrokukan, Meiji 35 [1902].

An illustrated guide to Kyoto's famed Miyako Odori dance, for distribution to Japanese and foreign tourists in April of 1902. The album-like program includes information in English and Japanese on the history of the dance, the names and roles of the (maik ...

Mizugaki manji sōshi ["Notebooks for brush-andwater calligraphy"]

Asai, Shigemitsu [produced by].

Tōkyō: Manjidō, Meiji 17 [1884].

A Meiji period advertisement for mizugaki paper produced by the Tokyo firm Manjidō. Mizugaki is a type of calligraphy practice in which the brush is dipped in water instead of ink.

One loose leaf, printe ...

Mongata Kiriyō-den ["Stencils for Crest-Cutting"]

[Creator unidentified].

[Japan: publisher unidentified, ca. mid-Meiji period (1870-90s)?].

A playful woodblock-printed work on cutting kamon (family crests) from folded paper in a process called monkiri ("crest-cutting"). This process involves cutting out the desired template from the book, laying it on to ...

Musha Jūroku Musashi ["A Jūroku Musashi Game of Warriors"]

Ōsai [Utagawa], Fusatane [illustrated by].

Bakurochō, [Tōkyō]: Higuchi Gintarō, [ca. Meiji period (1880-90s?)].

A variation on a classic Japanese strategy game, Jūroku Musashi ("Sixteen Soldiers"). In the game, which is believed to have originated in the Edo period, two players first decide who ...

Nankyoku Tairiku [The Antarctic Continent]

Nihon Kyokuchi Kenkyū Shinkōkai [edited by].

Tōkyō: Nihon Kyokuchi Kenkyū Shinkōkai, 1965.

A sizeable (79 x 109.5 cm) colour map of Antarctica edited and produced by the Japan Polar Research Association (J.P.R.A.) in 1965. The map has a scale of 1:6,500,000, and place names are recorded in English and occasional ...

Nankyoku Tairiku [The Antarctic Continent]

Tada, Fumio [proofread by].

Tōkyō: Chiseisha, [ca. 1957-1958].

A large (115 x 109 cm) colour map of Antarctica produced in commemoration of the International Geophysical Year (also known as the IGY, 1957-1958). Professor Tada Fumio (1900-1978), who proofread the map, was a central figure in organising Japan's ...

Natsu-matsuri Ikiji no Edokko [Summer Festival Spirit of the Edoites]

[Utagawa], Toyokuni [III] [illustrated by]. 

[Edo (Tōkyō)]: [Ōta] Takichi, [1858].

The rōnin Issun Tokubē (left) fights fishmonger (and accidental murderer) Danshichi Kurobē (right) in this dramatic scene from the kabuki Natsu Matsuri Naniwa Kagami illustrated by Utagawa Kunisada I ...

"新形友禅模様"

[Illustrator unidentified].

[Tōkyō]: Shiseidō, [ca. 1900-1920s].

A chiyogami paper illustrated with a design for yūzen dyeing of waves, flowers, and shallow sake cups marked with the character 壽 ("lucky"), woodblock-printed with a metallic pigment.

One leaf, complete. Browned, light creases, a few bumps to extremities ...

Nigatsu Yōka Kinshō no Hito Uke ni Iri ["February 8th, Luck to Those Born Under the Metal Element"]

[Kawanabe], Kyōsai [illustrated by].

Nihonbashi, [Tōkyō]: Takekawa Seikichi, [ca. Meiji period (1875-1890)?]. 

Uke-e - lucky prints - were presents sent to people entering their year of luck (whether a year was lucky for an individual was divined using ...

Noshi Shinpon ["New Book of Noshi"]

[Compiler unidentified].

[Japan, ca. early Meiji period (1870-90s)]. 

An album containing approximately 265 tipped-in examples of woodblock-printed noshi. Noshi are folded paper decorations designed to be affixed to wrapped gifts. In earlier times, noshi were strips of dried abalone (symbolising longevity) attached ...

Ōiri ["Full House"]

Kubo, [first name illegible] [produced by]; Sogai [illustrated by?].

Kōbe: Shinyūren, [ca. Taishō to early Shōwa period (1910-30s)?].

A set of six woodblock-printed match labels featuring illustrations possibly associated with kabuki or another form of traditional performance. The term ōiri (大入) which appears on each of the match car ...

[Documents Office, Ministry of Foreign Affairs (text by)].

[Ibaraki, Japan], Meiji 4 [1871]. Manuscript.

A handwritten draft or record of a text produced by authorities regarding the granting of official licenses to booksellers, on stationery woodblock-printed by the Koga Domain (present day Ibaraki Prefecture).

Two folded leaves, considerab ...

Oguri Hanguwan ["Oguri Hangan"]

[Author/s unidentified].

Niigata: Chida Tasaku, Meiji 27 [1894].

Issue one only of a hiragana version of the legend of the hero-warrior Oguri Hangan, printed by the Niigata-based uta-hon publisher Chida Tasaku. The fact that the edition is in hiragana suggests it was published for children.

Part one on ...

Oshiegusa Yoshiwara Suzume ["The Lesson of the Yoshiwara Sparrow"]

[Sakurada, Jisuke I (original text by)].

Kobunachō, [Tōkyō]: Igaya Kan'emon, [ca. mid Edo period (1800-30s)?]

A nagauta shōhon (booklet of lyrics for a "long song" dance-drama) for a performance of Oshiegusa Yoshiwara Suzume, a composition which likened courtesans to caged sparrows and ...

Ōsaka: [Yamakichi?], ca. early Meiji period (1870-90s)].

A set of three paper templates for cutting materials to make tabi socks or jika-tabi (shoe-like tabi), woodblock-printed with instructions. The templates have been sewn together and may have been sold as a set in this format.

Three templates, sewn together, with an accompanying hand-inscribed ...

Nemuke-zamashi Hitori-tanoshimi Hitotsutose-bushi ["Hitotsutose Songs to Enjoy Alone and to Shake Off Sleepiness"]

[Satō, Tomochika (text by)?].

Sakata, [Yamagata?]: [Satō Tomochika?], [ca. late Edo period (1820-50s)?].

A hitotsutose counting song in twenty verses with strong Buddhist overtones. While the theme seems unusual, as counting songs were usual ...

Ukiyo no Nami Yume no Uranai ["A Dream Omen of the Floating World"]

[Illustrator unidentified].

[Edo (Tōkyō)?: publisher unidentified, ca. Bunkyū 3 (1863)].

A comical fūshi-e featuring people whose businesses ha ...

Tōkyō: Mizuno Shōten, [ca. Taishō to early Shōwa period (1910-30s)?].

An advertisement for "Pyramid Best" cameras.

One leaf. Creases, paper lightly browned. 19.2 x 14.4 cm.

Reihō Mankintan ["Sacred Tiger Balm"]

Ise, [Japan]: Noma Inaba-en, [ca. mid-Edo period (17th to 19th century)].

An advertisement or set of instructions for the Noma family brand's Reiho Mankintan, a famous cure-all popular as a souvenir from Ise in the Edo period. The print is designed to look like a leaf from a book, as is apparent from the hanshin title colu ...

Ryōgoku-bashi ["Ryōgoku Bridge"]

Ichiyūsai [Utagawa], Kuniyoshi [illustrated by].

[Edo (Tōkyō)]: Edo Matsu [Edoya Matsugorō], [ca. late Bunka to early Bunsei era (1810-20s)?]. 

A somewhat roughly dressed woman peers over her shoulder at a small dog, Ryōgoku Bridge appearing in the aizuri fan-shaped cartouche in the background. The print is from a see ...