Photo albums of late Tokugawa and Meiji eras

From the end of the Tokugawa period to the Meiji era, photo albums of landscapes from various parts of Japan, the appearance of Japanese people, and lifestyles were produced and sold as souvenirs for foreigners visiting Japan. It is now also called "Yokohama Photography" because the base of the business was the opening port of Yokohama.
In the digital archive, you can see four photo albums produced and sold during the late Tokugawa and Meiji eras, landscape photographs of Yokohama included in each photo album, and all the photos recorded in the photo album by photographer Felice Beart.

Digital archive Yokohama's Memory URL: https://archive.lib.city.yokohama.lg.jp/museweb/ (external site)

Photos that were produced as souvenirs for foreigners in Yokohama were tailored to 50 to 100 albums with gorgeous covers.
The wooden cover is decorated with lacquer techniques, one of the traditional techniques of Japanese lacquer craft, and the surface is painted with gold and silver powder. The contrast between black or vermilion ground color and gold powder gives a very luxurious impression. White shells are fitted on cranes and women's faces, and are expressed three-dimensionally. This is a craft technique called Shibayama craftwork.
Makie and Shibayama crafts were both important export crafts that became popular overseas during the Meiji period. In particular, Shibayama Craft is said to have become the base for production of Shibayama Crafts in particular due to the growing demand for overseas customers.
Statues with Japanese images, such as women playing the koto, bamboo, cranes, and Mount Fuji, suggesting that the main buyers of photo albums were foreigners.

Reference materials:

• Masami Shiraishi, “Makie Album Full of Yokohama Color” (Citizen Graph Yokohama No.64 1988.6)
• "Basic Studies on Shibayama Work - Focusing on the Relations with Yokohama" Eiko Numata ("Bulletin of Research Bulletin of Yokohama-bijutsukan, Yokohama Civic Gallery, No.7, 2005.4).

＊If you search for a digital archive with "2001073993", you will hit the album body and 10 images of Yokohama scenery.

[Handpainted Photo Album] (external site)
50 colored photographs (including 10 of Yokohama scenery)
Billing Symbol: 2001073993

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FUJI FROM YOKOHAMA (external site)

THE 101 STONE STEPS AT YOKOHAMA (outside site)

BLUFF GARDENS YOKOHAMA (external site)

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＊If you search for a digital archive with "2027544196", you will find the album itself and 7 images of Yokohama scenery.

[Handpainted Photo Album] (external site)
50 colored photographs (including 7 of Yokohama scenery)
Billing Symbol: 2027544196

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VIEW OF HONMOKU, NEAR YOKOHAMA (external site)

HARBOUR FROM CAMP HILL YOKOHAMA (external site)

THEATER STREET YOKOHAMA (outside site)

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＊If you search for a digital archive with "2027544200", you will find the album itself and 8 images of Yokohama scenery.

[Handpainted Photo Album] (external site)
50 colored photographs (including 8 Yokohama scenery)
Billing Symbol: 2027544200

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GRAND HOTEL YOKOHAMA (outside site)

RAILL WAY STAITION YOKOHAMA (external site)

CHEERY BLOSSOM NOGEYAMA (external site)

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＊If you search for a digital archive with "2027544170", you will find the album itself and 8 images of Yokohama scenery.

[Handpainted Photo Album] (external site)
50 colored photographs (including 8 Yokohama scenery)
Billing Symbol: 2027544170

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VIEW OF BUND, AT YOKOHAMA (external site)

MAIN STREET, YOKOHAMA (external site)

VIEW OF FISHING VILLAGE AT HONMOKU (external site)

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Beart is said to have come to Japan around 1863 after serving the Crimean War and the Arrow War in China as a photographer. In Japan, he photographed many landscapes and Japanese customs from all over the country, and also served in the Shimonoseki War. He is one of the most well-known photographers who came to Japan at the end of the Tokugawa period.

Reference materials: "F. Beart Photo Book 1 Japanese Landscapes and People at the end of the Tokugawa Period" Yokohama Archives of History / Edited Akashi Shoten 2006

[Photo Album] (2061192614) contains photographs by photographer Ferrische Beart.
＊If you search for a digital archive with "2061192614", all images of the photos recorded in the album will be hit.

[Canale Yokohama] (outside site)

[Street in Yokohama] (outside site)

[Benten Sama Yokohama] (outside site)

[Kanagawa and Tokaido] (outside site)

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