Souvenir Book

Souvenir Book

Scrapbook style souvenir book tied with cord for binding with "Beautiful Nippon" embroidered on cloth cover; published by the Japanese Culture Promoting Society. The book covers are cloth covered with a tan colored --- and a brown and gray brocade strip at the binding edge. Embroidered at the top is "Beautiful Nippon" in blue thread and in the lower right corner an orange and red wallet with brush. The left edge is embroidered in red thread with four Kanji. Glued to the center is a paper cutout in the shape of an open book showing two prints: a mountainous scene and a village scene both with Mt. Fuji on the horizon. Inside the front cover is an image in brown ink of a peasant crossing a bridge toward a small hill and two buildings. The artist's seal is in the lower left corner. The first page is an interleaf with "Donated to the Arillia School by the Watanabe Family--Then to the Museum by Stan Greene 5-7-84".[see NOTE in Comments Field]. The second page has glued to it another brown ink drawing perhaps by the same artist featured on the inside cover of a man navigating a river beneath a cherry tree on a wood raft. The third page has printed on it in Kanji two large characters four smaller ones and three seals in red. The fourth page has glued to it a mass produced page with Kanji and English titles "Beautiful Nippon Published by the Japanese Culture Promoting Society" and handwritten in blue ink at the bottom "[dona]ted by Mr. And Mrs. Watanabe. March 1940". The fifth page contains a preface in Japanese on the front and in English on the back written by the Director of the Board of Tourist Industry. The sixth page contains a forward in Japanese on the front and in English on the back written by the President of the Japanese Culture Promoting Society. The seventh page contains an Editor's Note in Japanese on the front and in English on the back written in Tokyo in 1937.The eighth page is a color map of Japan. The ninth page is labeled "Contents". Two pages listing contents include scenes listed under the following general subjects: Scenic Trio of Japan; Eight Celebrated Views of Japan; National Parks; Celebrated Castels; Shrines and Temples; Parks and Gardens; Three Famous Bridges; Seasonal Flora; Military and National Sports; Modern Sports; Annual Functions and Customs; Theatrical Performances. The book contains an additional 96 pages featuring a variety of prints photographs and title pages; as well as occasional interleafing sheets which give information about the depicted subjects or protecting prints (these interleafing pages are not included in the page count).The inside back cover contians a brown ink drawing of grasses in the foreground with two building structures and two clumps of trees in the background.The artist's seal in the lower left corner is different than the one included in the drawing on the inside front cover.

1997.052.013