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- Title
- A Tourist's Album of Japan
- Date Created
- 1909
- Description
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Katherine Wolcott and her uncle, Robert Hull Fleming, compiled this photo album on their visit to Japan in 1909. Part of a larger Asian trip, the two stopped in Japan and collected photos, postcards, bookmarks, and other materials. Fleming was a graduate of the University of Vermont, and in 1929...
Show moreKatherine Wolcott and her uncle, Robert Hull Fleming, compiled this photo album on their visit to Japan in 1909. Part of a larger Asian trip, the two stopped in Japan and collected photos, postcards, bookmarks, and other materials. Fleming was a graduate of the University of Vermont, and in 1929 Katherine Wolcott helped to fund the construction of the Robert Hull Fleming Museum in memory of her late uncle. This album, a memento from their trip, was part of Wolcott’s own collection.There are nearly 40 leaves of collected photographs and postcards, numbering two to three per album page. The pictures range in content, some depicting staged photos of daily life while others portray landscapes and countryside. The album itself measures approximately 11 x 14 x 4 inches and is currently housed at the Robert Hull Fleming Museum at the University of Vermont.
Wolcott’s album captures a unique view of Japan at the brink of burgeoning Western influence. After defeating the Russians in the Russo Japanese War (1904-05), Japan began to cement itself as a global power, and its efforts to modernize began to attract Westerners. The images in this album depict a Japan with a strong national heritage and cultural appreciation as well as a newfound embrace of modernization and technology.
Most of the pictures in the album sold commercially as a form of postcard. In the early 1900s, the Japanese populace began consuming millions of these types of commercially produced picture postcards. Eventually, the medium became so popular that it started to replace the more traditional wood block print. The citizenry sought pictures of their budding nation, wanting to hold a still image of the rapidly modernizing and changing countryside.
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- Title
- A group of female performers
- Date Created
- 1909
- Description
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The woman on the right is holding a Shamisen, while the other women strike poses.
- Title
- A husband and wife dining
- Date Created
- 1909
- Title
- An umbrella street vendor
- Date Created
- 1909
- Description
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The woman is either repairing or crafting a series of umbrellas.
- Title
- Elderly man with a bow
- Date Created
- 1909
- Description
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An elderly man is posing in a clan kimono with a "Yumi" (Bow) in his left hand. The bareness of his left arm suggests that the man is a practitioner of "Kyudo" (Japanese Zen Archery).
- Title
- Female musician with koto and Ōtsuzumi
- Date Created
- 1909
- Description
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The instrument leaning against the wall behind the woman is a Koto. The drum she is holding and the one laying on the floor next to her are Ōtsuzumi.
- Title
- Five monks posing
- Date Created
- 1909
- Title
- Five women on a bench
- Date Created
- 1909
- Description
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Five women, dressed in elegant kimono's, sit astride a wooden bench. The picture is hand colored.
- Title
- Men practicing Kendo
- Date Created
- 1909
- Description
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The men here are depicted in full Kendo gear. Their armor and swords are designed to be used in practice against one another without causing harm. However, the mat/stage upon which the main subject of the picture stands could not serve as a ground to hold a Kendo match, as it is much too small.
- Title
- Priest holding a religious accoutrement
- Date Created
- 1909
- Description
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A man dressed in highly formal attire, holding what appears to be some form of altar in between his hands. The long sleeves and exaggerated hat suggest either a religious or upper class background.
- Title
- Sword sharpener practicing his trade
- Date Created
- 1909
- Title
- Three children standing in a garden
- Date Created
- 1909
- Title
- Two Ainu posing in traditional attire
- Date Created
- 1909
- Title
- Two Sumo wrestlers
- Date Created
- 1909
- Description
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The belt of cloth, usually silk, worn by the men is known as a "Mawashi" in Japanese.
- Title
- Two Sumo wrestlers locked in a grapple
- Date Created
- 1909
- Description
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The under garment worn by Sumo Wrestlers is known as the "Mawashi".
- Title
- Two female musicians
- Date Created
- 1909
- Description
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The woman on the left is playing a Koto, while the woman on the right is playing a Shamisen.
- Title
- Two women posing in front of a mural of Mt Fuji
- Date Created
- 1909
- Description
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Two women are depicted as walking through a rural setting. A mural of Mt Fuji is seen in the background. The women are wearing rather large Geta (Footwear).
- Title
- Woman admiring flowers
- Date Created
- 1909
- Title
- Woman carrying her child on her back
- Date Created
- 1909
- Title
- Woman crossing bridge over pond
- Date Created
- 1909
- Description
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A woman in a kimono is walking through a residence. She is crossing a small pond, walking over a wooden bridge.