A fascinating Edo-period woodblock-printed book illustrating samurai life, moral tales, and scenes of loyalty, discipline, and duty. This work, bound as a two-volume combined edition, represents the popular samurai-themed illustrated fiction (kibyōshi or gesaku) that flourished in 19th-century Japan.
Each page features finely detailed black-and-white woodblock prints, showing samurai engaged in conversation, action, and everyday life within traditional Japanese interiors. The visual storytelling, accompanied by flowing handwritten-style text, captures the moral and aesthetic ideals of Edo culture — combining drama, education, and art.
The vividly hand-colored cover shows two samurai figures in elegant robes, likely representing a master and retainer in dialogue — a common motif symbolizing loyalty and virtue.
Title: Unknown Edo Samurai Tale (Two Volumes Combined)
Period: Late Edo Period (19th century)
Genre: Samurai fiction / illustrated literature (kibyōshi or gesaku)
Technique: Woodblock printing with hand-colored cover
Binding: Fukuro-toji (pouch binding)
Paper: Handmade washi paper
Content: Samurai scenes, domestic dialogues, moral anecdotes, and historical episodes
This antique book provides a vivid insight into Edo-period samurai ideals and daily life as represented through printed art. Books of this kind were precursors to modern manga, reflecting the cultural fascination with warrior ethics, loyalty, and the human side of the samurai class.
A valuable artifact for collectors of Japanese woodblock prints, Edo literature, or samurai art.
