収蔵品紹介

There are various categories of ukiyo-e, such as bijin-ga (beautiful women), sumo prints and views of famous places. Of these, except for shunga1, the largest number of ukiyo-e prints created was the so-called yakusha-e2, which are prints depicting kabuki actors. Most of the artworks in this category depict kabuki actors performing on stage, but there are also some other themes. For example, depicting the daily lives of actors and scenes in the dressing room. There are also yakusha-e prints commemorating the death and death anniversary of actors, which are called shini-e. In addition, there are yakusha mitate-e3 which is a portrait of an actor that is not based on the […]

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I once introduced a map that has been described as ‘the earliest European rendition of Japan that depicts the state with a fair level of exactitude’ in the fourth issue of our e-magazine. It was a map sent from Luis Teixeira (dates unknown), a Portuguese cartographer, to Abraham Ortelius (1527-1598). Ortelius was a cartographer born in Antwerp. He amassed a large collection of maps, which he pulled together to create a compilation of the most advanced examples and published as Theatrum Orbis Terrarum in 1570 (1). This publication is considered to be the first recognized modern atlas in Europe (2). Popular indeed, it was republished a number of times over the […]

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If you are a regular reader of this column, you may have noticed that the vast majority of the special collections materials kept at the Lisa Sainsbury Library have been generously provided by Sir Hugh and Lady Cortazzi. Sir Hugh, who was the British Ambassador to Japan between 1980 and 1984, and his wife have been life-long supporters of the Institute. When he and his wife learned that an academic library was being built within the Institute, they took every opportunity to support us. The couple’s first major gift to the Sainsbury Institute came in 2001, back when the Library was still preparing to open. The pair selected around 800 […]

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Many of the Cortazzi ukiyo-e collection held at the Sainsbury Institute are Yokohama-e, or prints depicting non-Japanese foreigners. There are, however, some unique exceptions including Sumo-e or prints depicting sumo wrestlers. Sumo, as familiar to many, is a wrestling match that takes place on a dohyō mound. Two rotund yet herculean rikishi wrestlers battle out strength by forcing the opponent down to the ground or out of the circular ring. Recorded history of sumo dates back to early 8th century. The mention of sumo appears in Kojiki and Nihon shoki translated respectively as “Records of Ancient Matters” and “The Chronicles of Japan” (Yamada, 1982) and is said to have originated some 1500 […]

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During the Edo period (1615-1868), some 64% of Edo city (present day central Tokyo) was occupied by mansions and residences of daimyō feudal lords, hatamoto samurai and gokenin vassals serving the Tokugawa shogun (Masai, 1975). These dwellings were typically shielded from public view with tall boundary walls. With no name plate on house number or street signs to go by, visitors experienced tremendous difficulty in finding the right house. The western side of the Edo Castle was said to be especially challenging as the first Tokugawa shogun, Ieyasu, deliberately positioned the obscure residences of his samurai and other security forces, who were collectively called ōban gumi, in the area to […]

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Following on from my last e-magazine article, this article highlights further interesting details found in M Breton’s Le Japon, ou Moeurs, usages et costumes des habitans de cet empire (Japan: Customs and costumes of the inhabitants of this empire). Published in 1818 by A. Nepveu, this four volume set includes abundant illustrations to provide a glimpse into Japanese life. Amongst the images is this set of illustrations to the right found in volume 3. Captioned ‘Portraits de Japonais’ (portraits of Japanese), the set accompanies the section in the book on the different ways the Japanese wore their hair. The text describes how physicians and monks shaved their heads, which the image does illustrate. […]

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In June 2017, Sir Hugh and Lady Cortazzi gifted the Lisa Sainsbury Library with a set of four books printed in Paris in 1818. Entitled ‘Le Japon’ (see note 1 for the full publication title), each palm sized book contains 13 to 15 images in addition to the illustrations at the front and back pages of the book. Collectively, the set features 60 images. At the time of receiving the books, Sir Hugh asked us to both scan and find the original source of the printed illustrations. Since then, I have scoured other historical sources and documents as well as received new insights and guidance from a number of generous […]

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The title introduced in this edition is the Album of One Hundred Birds by Kōno Bairei at the request of its donor, Sir Hugh Cortazzi. The title contains images by Kōno Bairei, a prominent artist in the Kyoto art circle in the early Meiji period (1868-1912). Published in 1881, the three-volume album set contains dual chrome woodblock printed images bound in Eastern-style. Unfortunately, only the first of the three albums is housed in the Lisa Sainsbury Library. Inside the album, a single bird species accompanied by a plant (mainly flowers) that is native to the depicted creature’s habitat is presented over each spread. Each album contains some 30 images, and […]

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Many of the readers may have experienced the fortune of a stranger having a profound effect on one’s life. This is precisely what happened when Ogawa Kazumasa (Isshin) (1860-1929), a Meiji and Taishô era pioneer in photography and photographic print publishing, met Okabe Nagatomo (1855-1925), domain lord of the former Kishiwada domain near Osaka. In 1884, the virtually penniless 24-year-old Ogawa boarded the American naval ship as a sailor to travel to the United States to study the most advanced photography techniques. Studying in Boston while surviving on very little means, he met Sakakibara Kôitsu, a former samurai from Kishiwada domain. Sakakibara who felt sorry for Ogawa’s difficult circumstances wrote […]

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In this issue and next, I hope to introduce a series of photography albums by Ogawa Kazumasa, an early pioneer in Japanese photography, in response to a special request made by Sir Hugh Cortazzi, patron to the expanding Lisa Sainsbury Library’s rare books collection. Ogawa Kazumasa (1860-1929) was one of the key giants of the early Japanese photography world. Active from around the second half of 19th century to the early 20th century, Ogawa was a leading photographer and photographic print maker known for his ability to adopt cutting edge techniques in a period of rapid developments. Ogawa was the first Japanese to produce collotype prints in the country in […]

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As many of our readers may already be familiar with the Cortazzi Map Collection through a series of our e-magazine articles, I would like to take the opportunity in this article to introduce the Cortazzi Ukiyoe Collection. The Collection comprises of 43 titles of polychrome woodblock prints on long-term loan from Sir Hugh and Lady Cortazzi to the Lisa Sainsbury Library. Amongst the prints are 25 titles classified as ‘Yokohama-e’ (literally, Yokohama pictures). They typically represent scenes including non-Japanese figures that were produced around the latter part of 19th century when the Meiji restoration brought an end to the era of shogunate rule in Japan. The Collection here in the Lisa […]

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95 years ago on 3 March 1921, the then 19-year-old Crown Prince Hirohito (later Showa Emperor) set sail from Yokohama port to spend nearly six months traveling abroad on the Japanese naval ship Katori, accompanied by another naval ship, Kashima. To organise the Imperial Prince’s tour to the West was a complex task and took nearly two years to plan beginning in 1919. The idea of the Western Tour began when Crown Prince Hirohito turning 18 on 29 April, 1919, and his ‘coming of age’ ceremony was held on 7 May. A special banquet was held in his honour on 10 May at the Kasumigaseki Imperial Palace. At the celebratory […]

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The Lisa Sainsbury Library holds a letter written in English by Mishima Yukio, who is considered to be one of the most distinguished literary figures of 20th century Japan, to the late Professor Geoffery Bownas in his lifetime. Geoffrey Bownas’ involvement with Japan began when he was drafted into the army in 1942 while still a student at Oxford University. It was in the army where he learned Japanese in order to decode Japanese transcrips. He later established the Japanese Studies department at Oxford University in 1954 and became the first Professor of Japanese Studies in 1965 at Sheffield University. Professor Bownas was also a devoted friend of the Institute […]

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The Flowers of Japan and the Art of Floral Arrangement by Josiah Conder was published by Hakubunsha, a bookseller once in the Ginza district of Tokyo in 1891. One of the striking features of the book are the fourteen beautifully coloured woodblock prints of seasonal flowers, of which six are depicted by Tsukioka Yoshitoshi (1839-1892). Yoshitoshi is often associated with his rather grotesque ukiyo-e imageries. To see his more intimate character through his delicate flowers is all the more a delightful surprise. Other illustrations include four prints that depict room interiors by Kawanabe Kyōsui (1868-1925), the daughter of another celebrated ukiyo-e artist, Kawanabe Kyōsai (1831-1889). Her images offer a glimpse of […]

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Lobed underglaze blue porcelain dish with map of Kyushu A porcelain dish with the map of Kyushu measuring some 24 centimetres in diameter is kept at the Lisa Sainsbury Library as part of the Cortazzi map collection. The inscription on the underside of its wooden box lid mentions the content being a gift to the then British Ambassador to Japan, Sir Hugh Cortazzi from the Director of Namban Bunkakan Museum, Kitamura Yoshiro on 3 November 1983. This day is observed as the ‘Day of Culture’ in Japan and is one of the country’s national holidays. In general ‘map dish’, as they are commonly referred to for their illustrated map designs, […]

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Published under Edward VII’s reign in 1907 by London publisher Chatto & Windus, this book was written by William John Loftie. Essays on the geographic history of London together with 26 colour and 12 sepia illustrations compose the book. The book appears to have been popular as in 1908, The Colour of Paris: Historic, personal & local was published, followed by The Colour of Rome: Historic, personal & local published in 1909, both with ample illustrations. While the authors differ across the volumes, the illustrations in the series are all by the Japanese artist Makino Yoshio, who went by an anglophile spelling of his name Markino. As many may already have a certain knowledge […]

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Curt Adoph Netto, who authored Papier-Shmetterlinge aus Japan, is perhaps a less well-known name even amongst the more versed Japanese art enthusiasts. Netto arrived in Japan in the early Meiji period as oyatoi gaikokujin, or foreign advisors hired by the Japanese government. He worked as the first Professor of Geology as well as Mining and Metallurgy at the Faculty of Science of Tokyo University, making Netto one of Japan’s metallurgy pioneers. Netto was born in Freiburg, Saxony in 1847. He studied at Technische Universität Bergakademie Freiberg between 1864 and 1869 where his mine inspector father and grandfather studied. There, he proved to be a star pupil having received an academic excellence award […]

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The English are world famous for their love of gardening. Perhaps less obvious is the horticultural enthusiasm of the Edo period Japanese, who were just as keen a gardener as the English. In fact, Japanese Edo period eras are often twinned with certain flowers and plants that became particularly fashionable during the period. For instance, camellia is associated with Kan’ei era, while azalea marked the Genroku era. Other examples include chrysanthemum of Seitoku, acer tree of Kyōhō, Ardisia crispa of Kansei, morning glory of Bunka-Bunsei, Japanese rhodea and pink of Tempō, and henka or ‘mutant’ morning glory of Kaei-Ansei eras. Such associations reflect the gardening fever experienced in many parts of Japan […]

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Let me first draw your attention to the image below. While it is difficult from a computer screen to detect the subtle texture, colour and lustre, the textile sample shown here is a woven fabric rather than an embroidered piece. This is one of 15 textile samples in the Lisa Sainsbury Library holdings entitled ‘History of Textiles’ (Orimono no henyō) produced by Kawashima Textile Manufacturers Ltd. (present day Kawashima Selkon) in 2001. The 15 exquisite fragments are reproductions of rare Japanese cloths made between 7th to 18th century. The folding case containing the samples is jewel like in itself. With hand-written title strip reading ‘History of Textiles: Collection of 15 […]

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This year falls on the Chinese zodiac Year of the Horse. The jūnishi or twelve symbols of the Chinese zodiacs are horary signs based on the point at which Jupiter can be found annually as it makes its twelve year orbit round the sun. The zodiac is divided into twelve parts with a particular Chinese character attributed to each point; the twelve animals were introduced later to help make each point easier to recognize. Evidence from archaeological excavation indicates that this Chinese astrological system was prevalent in Japan by the Kofun period (c. 3rd century – 538). However, according to recent research, equines were not domestic to Japan in the […]

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I would like to start my article for this e-magazine with a request to our readers to enlighten me on the album I am introducing here. Red and white plum blossom from Nampō Gafu: Album of Birds and Flowers. The book is bound in an accordion fold format and appears to have no evidence or trace of a title strip. In fact the book has no given title, preface or postface. The last page includes a postscript indicating that it was made (not printed, but hand painted) on the ‘First winter of Meireki 4 (1658)’. This date is rather peculiar, for Japan has a tradition of ascribing new era names […]

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The map introduced in this issue, the Iaponiae Insvlae Descriptio map, is the earliest European rendition of Japan that depicts the state with a fair level of exactitude. It is by Luís Teisera, a celebrated Portuguese cartographer who was backed by the Spanish court. In 1595 the Dutchman Abraham Ortelius published a map based on Teisera’s drawing inAdditamentum Quintum, Theatri Orbis Terrarum; the first edition of this atlas appeared in 1570. The map accurately plots various Japanese towns and their locations in Roman letters, and suggests that it was founded on information sent to Europe by Jesuits in Japan. In fact, although Teisera was a Jesuit, he himself never set […]

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Do you know why Japan is called ‘Japan’ in English and not ‘Nihon’ or ‘Nippon’ as it is pronounced in Japanese? It is said that Marco Polo was the first to bring Japan’s existence to the attention of Europe. The exact time and place of Marco Polo’s birth are unknown. However, today the accepted narrative is that he was born in 1254 in the Venetian Republic to a merchant family engaged in trade with the Middle East. In 1271, Marco Polo set off on a trading voyage to Asia by land with his father and uncle. For seventeen years they remained within China, which was then ruled by the Mongol […]

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“The history of Japan : giving an account of the ancient and present state and government of that empire, of its temples, palaces, castles and other buildings, of its metals, minerals, trees, plants, animals, birds and fishes, of the chronology and succession of the emperors, ecclesiastical and secular, of the original descent, religions, customs, and manufactures of the natives, and of their trade and commerce with the Dutch and Chinese : together with a description of the Kingdom of Siam”Written in High-Dutch by Engelbertus Kæmpfer ; and translated from his original manuscript, never before printed by J.G. Scheuchzer, with the life of the author, and an introduction; London : 1728 […]

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“Atlas Japannensis: being remarkable addresses by way of embassy from the East-India Company of the United Provinces, to the Emperor of Japan: containing a description of their several territories, cities, temples, and fortresses, their religions, laws, and customs, their prodigious wealth, and gorgeous habits, the nature of their soil, plants, beasts, hills, rivers, and fountains with the character of the ancient and modern Japanners.”Collected out of their several writings and journals byPrinted by Tho. Johnson for the author, and are to be had at his house in White Fryers, 1670. The Atlas Japannensis is the oldest book owned by the Lisa Sainsbury Library. The original Dutch version was published in Amsterdam in […]

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