Kobunsha/Hasegawa Books

The early years of Hasegawa's publishing venture were dominated by his book business. This period is very well documented in the book Takejiro Hasegawa: Meiji Japan's Preeminent Publisher of Wood-Block-Illustrated Crepe-Paper Books by Frederick A. Sharf, published by the Peabody Essex Museum in October, 1994.

Collectors use a combination of the publisher name (Kobunsha or Hasegawa) and the address, which can usually be found somewhere in a book, to infer the publication date. The following table is a chronology of the known names and addresses:

August,1885 - 1889Kobunsha2 Minami Saegi-cho, Kyobashi-ku, Tokyo
May,1889 - 1890Kobunsha3 Maruya-cho, Kyobashi-ku, Tokyo
December,1890 - 1901Hasegawa10 Hiyoshi-cho, Kyobashi-ku, Tokyo
March,1901 - 1902Hasegawa20 Honzaimoko-cho, Nichome, Nihonbashi-ku, Tokyo
September,1902 - 1911Hasegawa38 Honmura-cho, Yotsuya-ku, Tokyo
June,1911 -Hasegawa17 Kami Negishi-cho, Shitaya-ku, Tokyo

Books to View
The following books have been scanned into digital images and are available for you to view:

Sword and Blossom Poems, Volume 3 A collection of poetry presented against complementary woodblock printed original artwork by Shoda Koho, Yoshimoto Gesso, and Arai Yoshimune. There are also some reproductions of older ukiyo-e prints by Hokusai and Hiroshige.

Momotaro or Little Peachling Number 1 in the Japanese Fairy Tale Series, fully creped, originally published in August, 1885. Original artwork by Sensei Eitaku. A later printing, produced after June, 1911, evidenced by the 17 Kami Negishi address. This link courtesy of Nobbly.Com. A separate browser window will open.

The Tongue Cut Sparrow Number 2 in the Japanese Fairy Tale Series, fully creped, originally published in August, 1885. Original artwork by Sensei Eitaku. A later printing, produced after June, 1911, evidenced by the 17 Kami Negishi address. This link courtesy of Nobbly.Com. A separate browser window will open.

The Old Man and the Devils Number 7 in the Japanese Fairy Tale Series, fully creped, originally published in June, 1886. Original artwork by Sensei Eitaku. A later printing, produced after June, 1911, evidenced by the 17 Kami Negishi address. This link courtesy of Nobbly.Com. A separate browser window will open.

The Princes Fire-Flash and Fire-Fade Number 14 in the Japanese Fairy Tale Series, fully creped, originally published in July, 1887. Original artwork by Sensei Eitaku. A later printing, produced after June, 1911, evidenced by the 17 Kami Negishi address. This link courtesy of Nobbly.Com. A separate browser window will open.


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