A 19th Century Book of Ink Drawings: Auspicious Images from a Roof Tile Workshop

ca. late nineteenth century
11 leaves, each: 10 7/8" x 7 3/4", 27.5 cm x 19.5 cm

What a really lovely book of hand drawn, auspicious images from old Japan.

This book is from a group of others that was used by a roof tile maker in Ise, Japan.  The books in the group are dated to the Meiji era (1868-1912) as is this one, although you will see that much later this book was imprinted with a modern stamp which bears the company's phone number.  The book, however, is old.

Its 11 leaves are illustrated by 19 hand-drawn ink images, each of them charming.  And in our opinion, the book is worth the image of the maneki neko alone.  What a wonderful image!  Also seen in the book are Japan's lucky gods--Daikoku and Ebisu among them--as well as carp, lion dogs, dragons, helmets, ceremonial noshi, a morning glory, and more.

The washi is very worn and soft from decades of use; the paper shows creasing, soiling, holes and a few stains.  The book--or pamphlet--is simply bound using cotton cording.

A rich and wonderful document from old Japan, and one that is fabulous for its spirited, hand drawn images.

Recommended.