Japanese Cultural History Meiji Era Visual Documentation Ogawa's Japanese Costumes Before the Restoration 1893 Pre Modern Dress and Class Representation

Kazumasa Ogawa

First Edition

Ogawa, Kazumasa. Japanese Costumes Before the Restoration 1893 documents visual reconstructions of pre Meiji Japanese dress, social roles, and martial identity, produced during a period when Japan actively reinterpreted its pre modern past following the political and cultural transformations of the Meiji Restoration. Ogawa, a central figure in early Japanese photography, worked in collaboration with Chitora Kawasaki of the Tokyo Fine Arts School to produce staged images representing historical costume traditions from approximately 620 to 1550, including the Fujiwara and Ashikaga periods. The work establishes a photographic record of how late nineteenth century Japan presented earlier systems of class, performance, and military organization at a time when modernization efforts sought to define national identity through both preservation and reinterpretation of historical forms.

Ogawa, Kazumasa. Japanese Costumes Before the Restoration. St. Louis: Ogawa, 1893. First edition. Large format volume measuring approximately 13.5 x 10.5 inches. Original cardstock covers, three hole bound with light green silk ribbon. Complete with 17 large black and white halftone chemigraph plates. The plates depict men and women in historically styled dress, including a Fujiwara period commander, multiple samurai figures holding katana, a Bugaku court performer, a court lady in formal silk kimono, and a street vendor, among others. The images present staged scenes emphasizing costume, posture, and role-specific attributes associated with different historical periods.

Issued in the context of international exhibitions and cross cultural exchange, including Ogawa’s activity abroad, the volume aligns with broader Meiji era efforts to present Japanese culture to Western audiences through controlled visual narratives of tradition and hierarchy. The emphasis on armor, ceremonial dress, and performance reflects contemporaneous interest in codifying national heritage during rapid industrial and political change. Light damp staining to front cover and some loosening to silk binding; contents remain stable and complete. Overall very good condition.

Item #18463

Price: $950.00