Kyoto, Compliments of Kyoto Exhibitors' Association
Binding Method. I have not seen this book with the original binding material in place. It appears that the book was bound by silk string ties or thin silk ribbon ties. There are 3 sets of holes for the ties. One set at the top and one at the bottom both approximately 4.5 cm from the top/bottom edges and .7 cm in from the spine edge. These sets are wide spaced (3 cm wide). In the center approximately .5 cm in from the edge there is a pair of narrow spaced tie holes (1 cm wide). There appear to be no inner binding techniques used (ie twisted string or Japanese paper (koyori), glue or staples) The spine is not covered. Color Woodblock Plates. There are 16 plates. The plates reflect the theme of the portion of the book where they are located. Each print has a seal. The woodblock prints are printed on a single sheet of high quality paper measuring (11 1/2 x 9 5/16 - 29.4 x 23.8 cm). Within this area the actual woodblock image occupies from 70-80% of the area. Mounting of the Plates. The plates are tipped to a heavy stub which is approximately 2.5 cm wide. Approximately .5 cm of the midpoint of the plate is tipped to the stub. The plate is then folded. The stub is then secured by the binding. To see the front and back of the stub, click here. Using this technique, the plate is not actually restricted by the binding (string ties) and can be opened fully in a book in the bound state. Publication Data. The book does not contain a title page or colophon. The printer, date or other publication information is not provided. Since it was intended for distribution at the World's Columbian Exposition (The Chicago World's Fair) which was held in Chicago in 1893, the date of ca 1893 is used. Because of the woodblock plates, thin text paper and binding technique (string or ribbon ties using stab holes), I believe the book was printed and assembled in Japan. The following credit is given: The thanks of the Kyoto Exhibitors' Association are due to Miss Mary G. Prince for valuable assistance rendered in the preparation of the preceding pages. To see the first three pages (Kyoto), click here. The last six pages of the book contain a listing of artists and craftsmen. To see that listing, click here. The National Library of Australia records this book as having 72 pages. Perhaps they reached that page count by counting the woodblocks (16), map, the front and back covers and internal pages that are blank. My page count did not include these to reach the total of 44 pages. I only counted pages with actual text and did not include the covers in the page count. As the pages are not numbered in the book, variances in reported pages are to be expected. All PlatesKyoto (intro) 3 pp, 1 color woodblock The Imperial Palace at Kyoto 2 pp, 1 color woodblock Nishijin Silk Fabrics 2 pp, 1 color woodblock Painting 3 pp, 1 color woodblock Arashiyama 2 pp, 1 color woodblock Kiyomidzu Temple & Kyoto Porcelain 3 pp, 2 color woodblock Mai, or Kyoto Dance 2 pp, 1 color woodblock Fans and Fan Dance 2 pp, 1 color woodblock Yuzen, or Dyed Fabrics 3 pp, 1 color woodblock Gion Festival 2 pp, 1 color woodblock Embroidery 2 pp, 1 color woodblock Kinkakuji, Golden Pavilion 2 pp, 1 color woodblock Ho-o-Do; Phoenix Hall 2 pp, no color woodblock The Daibutsu at Kyoto 3 pp, 1 color woodblock San-ju-san-gen-do, and lacquer Industry 3 pp, 1 color woodblock (Credit Page) 1 pp (Map) 1 pp Artists of Painting Dept. 6 pp (all Departments) Dyeing and Embroidery Dept. Nishijin Silk Weaving Dept. General Dept. Toy Dept. Gold Leaf Dept. Bronze or Hardware Dept. Carving Dept. Kyoto The Imperial Palace at Kyoto Nishijin Silk Fabrics Painting Arashiyama Kiyomidzu Temple & Kyoto Porcelain Mai, or Kyoto Dance Fans and Fan Dance Yuzen, or Dyed Fabrics Gion Festival Embroidery Kinkakuji, Golden Pavilion Ho-o-Do; Phoenix Hall (no plate) The Daibutsu at Kyoto (bronze ware) San-ju-san-gen-do, and Lacquer Industry Map
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