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Item Type: Antique Print
Year: c.1904 - 122 years old
Size: 10.0" x 7.25" (25cm x 18cm)
Condition:
This early Meiji-era Japanese print captures Hibiya Park in its infancy, printed on January 5, 1904, just seven months after the park opened on June 1, 1903. Created on the site of a former military parade ground near the Imperial Palace, Hibiya Park was Japan’s first Western-style modern public park and represented a new approach to recreation and public space in Tokyo.
The scene captures Japan in transition. Women in traditional kimono stroll through the grounds alongside figures in Western dress, while a visitor rests on a Western-style park bench beneath the trees. Unlike traditional Japanese gardens, which were largely designed for viewing and contemplation, Hibiya incorporated Western concepts of public leisure, including lawns, pathways, flower beds, fountains, and seating.
A circular inset depicts the nearby Hibiya tram station, highlighting the modern transportation network that made new public spaces increasingly accessible to Tokyo residents. The combination of streetcars, Western architecture, modern park design, and traditional Japanese clothing reflects the Meiji-era spirit of bunmei kaika, or “civilization and enlightenment,” as Japan rapidly embraced Western technology and customs while maintaining its own cultural traditions.
Part of the Tokyo Meisho, or “Famous Places of Tokyo,” series, the print was published in Tokyo’s Nihonbashi district, a center of Japanese print publishing since the Edo period. Its January 1904 date also places it on the eve of the Russo-Japanese War, which began the following month and would become a defining event in Japan’s emergence as a modern world power.
More than a century later, the print offers a fascinating view of Tokyo at the beginning of the twentieth century and of Hibiya Park when one of the city’s now-familiar landmarks was almost entirely new.
Size: 7.25" x 10.0"
Condition: Very Good, Age-appropriate wear. Paper toning in accordance with the print's age. Marks/stains as per photo. Wear around the edges and minor paper loss might be present in some prints. Please refer to each print's image to get a better understanding of the condition.
Age-appropriate wear. Paper toning in accordance with the print's age. Marks/stains as per photo. Wear around the edges and minor paper loss might be present in some prints. Please refer to each print's image to get a better understanding of the condition.
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All of our posters are guaranteed to be authentic and as described in the product description to the best of our knowledge and belief, and in good faith. Quite simply, if you are not satisfied with your purchase for any reason, simply contact us within 14 days of receipt and we'll gladly accept your return, providing the item is in the same condition as it was sent.
Returns
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To be eligible for a return, your item must be in the same condition that you received it. It must also be sent in the original packaging.
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Authentic Vintage Posters- RETURNS
7514 Girard Ave
STE 1615
La Jolla, CA 92037
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