A rare Meiji-period Japanese edition of Bunshō Kihan Kōgi (文章軌範講義), or Lectures on the Model of Literary Composition, printed in Tokyo by Bunseidō (文盛堂 柳原蔵版).
This book was part of Japan’s early kanbun (classical Chinese) education, used to train students in moral prose, Confucian ethics, and literary style. The text is printed vertically in fine movable type, with detailed annotations and small phonetic glosses for reading classical Chinese.
Bound in the traditional Japanese fukuro-toji style, with a striking crimson title wrapper, this edition exemplifies the academic publishing of the early Meiji Enlightenment, when Japan sought to modernize while preserving its classical learning heritage.
Format: Fukuro-toji binding, crimson cover paper, woodblock or early movable-type print
Language: Classical Chinese (漢文) with Japanese annotations
Content: Rhetorical and moral essays with commentary
Bunshō Kihan was a staple of East Asian education, teaching the art of refined writing (bunshō) rooted in Confucian ideals and balanced structure. This annotated Meiji commentary reflects Japan’s educational reform during the 1870s–1880s, balancing Chinese scholarship with modern Japanese pedagogy.
Such works are now sought after by collectors of Japanese educational history, Meiji literature, and kanbun manuals.
