Wayo Kijinden: Shohen [Notable Figures from Japan and the West: First Series]

US$1,860.00

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Wayō Kijinden: Shohen [Notable Figures from Japan and the West: First Series]

Jōno, Takashige [text by], Ochiai [Utagawa], Yoshiiku [illustrations by].

Tōkyō: Sanshobō, Meiji 5 [1872].

An international take on the kijinden ("eccentric figures" or "extraordinary figures") genre, featuring portraits and brief biographies of a total of 37 Japanese and Western figures, including Alexis de Tocqueville, John Britton, Arai Hakuseki, Samuel Drew, Hiraga Gennai, William Smith, Benjamin Disraeli, Admiral Perry, and so on. The anecdotes generally describe the events or achievements which made the figures famous. William Brecher notes in Japan’s Private Spheres: Autonomy in Japanese History, 1600-1930 that "Jōno's kijinden rationalized an integration of the two sides [academic learning and spiritual depth] while affirming the continuing importance of native culture".¹ The title records the book as the shohen (first series), but no later published series were traced.

One four-hole-bound (yotsumetoji) volume, complete, on double leaves, traditional East Asian binding style (fukurotoji). Original wrappers worn and creased, original daisen title panel worn away. Ex-ownership notes to title and colophon, seal to first text page. Brown marks to first and last few leaves, not affecting text legibility. Thumbing, marks, and browning internally. Wormholes partially repaired with washi mounting. 20 leaves. 17.5 x 11.8 cm.

1. William Brecher, Japan’s Private Spheres: Autonomy in Japanese History, 1600–1930 (Leiden: Brill, 2021), 184.

Wayo Kijinden: Shohen [Notable Figures from Japan and the West: First Series]
Price: $1,860.00 (USD)