Dai-shin-kufū Zenmai Mawari Kage Tōrō (Grand New Ingenuity: A Spring-Wound Shadow Lantern)

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Dai-shin-kufū Zenmai Mawari Kage Tōrō [Grand New Ingenuity: A Spring-Wound Shadow Lantern] 

[Creator unidentified].

Horikawa, [Kyōto]: Wakuji, [ca. late Edo period to early Meiji period (1850-70s?)]. 

An instruction sheet for building a karakuri ningyō - a doll or puppet designed to move using a mechanism but appear as if it is moving independently. The leaf briefly describes and illustrates how to construct a moving doll and spinning wheel. In the Edo period, zenmai-mawashi (recorded in the title as zenmai-mawari) referred to a type of karakuri doll powered by a zenmai (spring). Various wires and wheels are evidently involved in the construction of this particular automaton, but it is unclear if the spring mentioned in the title is actually required. The title also uses the term kage tōrō, meaning shadow lantern, suggesting that the automaton could have been used as both a toy in play and a novelty in performance. An extremely scarce piece of ephemera recording the mechanics of a karakuri doll. 

One leaf, woodblock-printed on one side, complete. Light wear and browning. Creases and minor foxing to extremities. 11.4 x 27.5 cm.

Dai-shin-kufū Zenmai Mawari Kage Tōrō (Grand New Ingenuity: A Spring-Wound Shadow Lantern)
Price: $1,840.00 (USD)