1869 William Pryor Floyd – HONG KONG CENTRAL – LARGE PANORAMA PHOTOGRAPH – ChinaClick to enlarge

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Hong Kong Harbour
Rare Early Panorama Photograph
By William Pryor Floyd
Colonial China
1869


Hong Kong, 1869. Exceedingly scarce and large panoramic albumen photograph of the area known as “Central” in Hong Kong, produced by renowned nineteenth century photographer William Pryor Floyd. A very large photograph, measuring 56 x 22,5 cm, comprised of two photographs joined at the center and mounted to larger folding cardstock leaf, as issued by the photographer. Slight fading, more so to one side, otherwise in very good and original condition, rare and suitable for framing.

Floyd’s surviving works provides an especially insightful and invaluable visual history of Hong Kong’s colonial topography, Chinese architecture, and Western integration. His photographs are highly sought after today, not only for the historic aspect, but also for the skill and beauty with which he so elegantly captured each scene.

A rare and outstanding photograph, the center of colonial China is memorialized in this view, produced by renowned British photographer William Pryor Floyd at the height of his success.

The above photograph is large, measuring 56 x 22,5 cm (almost 2 feet long)

The view captures the early stages of British Colonial development in Hong Kong, showing foreign presence encroaching and settling into the newly acquired British colony, the Island of Hong Kong having been ceded to the United Kingdom less than thirty years prior, in 1842.

At the center is St. John’s Cathedral piercing the well treed landscape. Administrative buildings and barracks stand with ample undeveloped grounds between them. The expanse of Hong Kong Harbour is faintly seen in the background, dotted with Chinese and foreign vessels. Government House, the official residence of the Governor was built in 1855. Various barracks, naval base and residence of Commander, Flagstaff House were built on the east end of the district. Between 1860 and 1880 the construction of City Hall, Theatre Royal and other financial structures turned ‘Central’ into the heart of Hong Kong.Following are close-up cropped views of the photograph:


William Pryor Floyd (1834 – circa 1900) was a British photographer of high regard and superior skill active in China between 1865 and 1874, whose “Hong Kong studio was, for a time, one of the most successful commercial operations of its kind in the Far East.” [described as such in Terry Bennett, History of Photography in China, Western Photographers 1861-1879]. Trading as Floyd & Co. as well as Victoria Photographic Gallery, his studio was at 62 Queen’s Road Central, Hong Kong. In his own time, he was respected and accomplished in his trade. The China Mail issue of 8 August 1868 praised his “desire to obtain memorials of a locality in which some of the best years of our life have been passed.”

Born Cornwall, England, the son of an innkeeper, at roughly thirty years of age, Floyd first appears in China as an assistant in the photography Shanghai studio of R. Shannon & Co, from 1863-64. He subsequently moved to Macau in 1865 to establish his own studio along the Praya Grande. In 1866 Floyd went to Hong Kong, there working jointly with the studio of Silveira & Co., being its operator from 1866-67, and purchasing the company in the early part of 1867. In 1868 he acquired a photographic company in Hong Kong known as ‘The Firm’. It was not in fact a firm, but a collection of photographic negatives that had been put together since 1859 by various photographers, including his competitor John Thomson, as well as the renowned Felix Beato, Weed, Howard, Milton Miller, Dutton & Michaels, and S.W. Halsey. Floyd is known to have published the works of these former studios. [One of Beato’s works is seen in the present album, evidently printed later by Floyd who now possessed the negative in his collection].

By 1870, the Hong Kong photographic market had become highly competitive. Several studios had failed or simply ceased to operate. Apart from the studios of John Thomson and William Floyd, a growing number of Chinese photographic establishments were opening, notably those of Pun Lun, Hing Qua John & Co. Ye Chung, Afong, and Lai Fong. In 1872 Thomson returned to Britain, selling his China negatives to Floyd. In 1874 Floyd too sold his portrait and topographical photography business and premises, the buyer being Emil Rusfeldt, and by 1875 Floyd had relocated to the Philippines.

1902-06 Der Ferne Osten – CHINA – FAR EAST – PHOTGRAPH MAGAZINE – Very Rare Set

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German Photo Illustrated Monthly Magazine
Describing the Far East
China – Japan – Korea – Indochina

Der Ferne Osten
By Carl Fink
Very Scarce Near-Complete Run
1902-1906

Carl FinkTitle: Der Ferne Osten. [The Far East].Shanghai: C. Fink, Deutsche Druckerei und Verlagsanstalt, 1902-1906. Exceedingly scarce consecutive and nearly-complete run of the noteworthy and pioneering German illustrated monthly magazine, produced by Carl Fink, one of the foremost journalists and publishers in China who is regarded as the most important German in China during the period. The lot consists of the first three volumes; within these 11 of the 12 issues are present and complete. Edited and published by Carl Fink, at the German printing and publishing house in Shanghai. 8vo. Volumes 1 to 3, nearly complete with the exception of only one quarterly issue. Altogether 1219 pages of text with profuse illustration, plus title pages, frontispieces, additional photographic plates. Features some zincograph photos, and some coloured and gilted artistic frontis illustrations. All ads are present in the first seven issues. All text is in German. The seven earlies issues in original boards, illustrated paper over cloth, titled in German to recto, Chinese symbol to verso. A lovely circa mid-century binding houses five issues, one of which is a duplicate of the issues in original binding, this volume half calf over marbled boards, spine tooled and titled in gilt. Minor wear to boards, otherwise in very good condition, most pleasing with several issues in original binding, crisp and clean internally, exceedingly scarce to find so many consecutive numbers. Sets this complete are not found even in libraries.This lot includes the following:Individual volumes, each issue in original bindings:
  Volume 1, published in 1902: Issues 1-4, paginated 1-408 consecutively
  Volume 2, published in 1903-1904: Issues 1,2,4 which includes pages 1-100, 101-180, 287-386, respectively (lacking quarterly issue 3 of vol. 2)
Rebound volume containing:
  Volume 2, Issue 1 only, page 1-100 (duplicate from above)
  Volume 3, published in 1905-1906: pages 1-432, one issue as released
  Note: This volume does not contain the ads; contents are otherwise complete.
“Der Ferne Osten” was a German illustrated monthly magazine, produced in Shanghai by Carl Fink from January 1902 to 1911. It was a non-political work, designed to present the customs and cultures of the Far East to an audience of foreign residents in China. Content focused largely on the Chinese ways of life, secondly Japanese, also examining to an extent Indo-China and Korea. Fink also published a monthly version of it in English, titled “The East of Asia” from 1902-1906.
Carl Fink (1861-1943) was a journalist, editor, publisher, and founder of several newspapers and periodicals in China, in German, English, and also one in the local Chinese language. Acclaimed as the most important of all Germans in China at the turn of the century, he was most instrumental in establishing the German news service for East Asia “Deutscher Nachrichtendienst fr Ostasien, from which German newspapers around the world drew information.Born in Lübeck, he studied law and state sciences at the Universities of Leipzig and Berlin. After a period of time in Mexico and Central America, in 1888 he began work as a journalist in the USA, subsequently doing the same for several years in Germany. In 1898 he was sent to Shanghai for a new appointment as “Chefredakteur” [Editor-in-Chief] of the weekly newspaper “Der Ostasiatische Lloyd” [The East-Asian Lloyd], retaining this post until 1917.Fink was one of the foremost journalists in China to become intricately involved in Chinese politics, not only as an observer or reporter, but taking a key active in political causes. Little-known about Fink is how early he began his involvement, for example in the “Hundred Days of Reform” movement of 1898. As it were, the daily journal, which appeared in 1898 called “Shiwu ribao,” then published by the influential periodical “Shiwu Bao [Chinese Progress]” was quickly suppressed by the reform movement. However, it was Carl Fink who enabled it to continue publication, by changing its title to “Zhongwai robao” and publishing it under a German firm owned by him.Among his other notable works in China, he founded the daily “Tsingtauer Neueste Nachrichten” [Tsingtau Latest News] which was published in Qindao from 1904 to 1914, during German occupation. Its success caused the local Tsingtau weekly paper “Deutsch-Asiatische Warte [German-Asian Viewpoint]” to terminate. He also founded the daily newspaper “Deutsche Zeitung in China” [German Gazette in China] during the Great War.Continuing as an influencer, and advocating his political views, he was during the First World War greatly involved in spreading “friendship propaganda” to maintain Sino-German relations. During the war, although many German newspapers were forced to stop, Der Ostasiatische Lloyd, edited by Fink, continued to be published. Later, he temporarily took over the political and general sections of the “Ostasiatischen Rundschau” [East Asian Magazine]. From 1926, he was editor for the journal of the Federation of Foreign Germans, “Deutschen Auslandswarte” [German Foreign Office]. From 1929 to 1934 he directed the magazines of the German Fleet Association and the Association of German Fleet Clubs.
Rare illustrated German magazines produced in Shanghai to disseminate knowledge of East Asian culture while also cementing Sino-German relations, this is a substantial lot, a near-complete run of consecutive issues from the very first and spanning five years.It is interesting to note that this publication began one year after the Boxer Rebellion ended, and its creator was a pioneer publisher in Shanghai, and one of the earliest to engage in political affairs. Although the content was strictly non-political, it was designed to foster better Sino-German relations by introducing Chinese custom in a most favourable manner to the German colonial settlers.At the time, Sino-German relations were rather tentative, owing to the Germans participation in the crushing of the Boxer Rebellion, and even before that, with Germany joining imperialist powers like Great Britain and France in carving out spheres of influence in the Chinese empire. [In 1900, Germany took part in the Eight-Nation Alliance that was sent to relieve the Siege of the International Legations in Beijing during the Boxer Uprising.]Luzac’s Oriental List, Vol. XIV, for January to December, 1903, published the following review of Der Ferne Osten which had only been in publication for one year: “Der Ferne Osten is a new periodical which cannot fail to be welcome to all who take an interest in the Far East. The three first numbers give us a clear idea as to the line on which the publication is evidently to be conducted – not the highly scientific line – but one which which will give complete satisfaction both to the man of learning and to the general reader. The purely scientific spirit is preponderant only in a few articles, in most, however, it keeps itself decently in the background, the authors wisely contenting themselves with communicating how China, Japan, Korea and Indo-China appear to the eye of the ordinary visitor. Such a periodical must prove a thorough success. It opens brilliantly with a well-written description of Modern Peking by Arthur H. Smith, the well-known author of the invaluable “Chinese Characteristics” and “Village Life in China”. The first number contains an interesting Chinese drama, translated by Professor Forke of Berlin, and elaborate descriptions of Port Arthur, Wei-hai-wei and Kiautschau. ln the second and third numbers we have a description of Peking Lamaseries and sketches of some of the episodes and some of the great men in China’s history. They also contain elaborate details of the Western Imperial Cemetery – the wonderful grandeur of which, is here depicted for us for the first time; a description of Buddhist monasteries and monastic life in China, and a variety of other articles. The work is profusely illustrated with good or tolerably good zincographs. The editors have had the good idea of publishing an edition in English at the same time. This is sure to greatly further the circulation of this new periodical. (See pp. 142, 167).”Glancing through the present volumes:The very first issue of the first volume is present here, and features a German translation of an account of Peking [Beijing] by American missionary and author Arthur Henderson Smith (1845-1932) who spent 54 years in service in China. A four-act theatrical play titled Revenge, “Die vergeltung. Schauspiel in vier Akten von Yu-Chin,” contains drawings made by Chinese artist Hsu Chung-Pao illustrating the justice system and sentences of torture, among other scenes. In a comparison between Russian, English and German districts in North China, we find a fold-out panoramic view of Port Arthur.Peking’s lama monasteries appear at the start of the second issue, with a detailed account with photographic illustration including ancient Tibetan text and a fourteenth century dynastic stone inscription. A large fold-out in this volume shows Bangkok’s Wat Phra Kaew, commonly known in English as the Temple of the Emerald Buddha. Following this is a description of Siam. A historical sketch on China centers on its ancient leaders, beginning with Emperor Qin Shi Huang, founder of the Qin dynasty. Other accounts describe ancient Chinese coinage and minting, as well as the Great Wall. Rather uncommon for the period, is a substantial account of Seoul in Korea.The second half of the year 1902, issues 3 and 4, present more highlights from Peking, Buddhist cloisters, an historic gravesite, rock tombs, the various Chinese boats including rafts and sampans, a history of Tsingtau, a description of Shashi [Jingzhou] which is here called “the center of the middle kingdom” by the article’s title, a four-page honorary account to Guangxu Emperor who had in the same year returned to the capital after the withdrawal of the foreign powers, a description of Chinese Jews, university education in Canton, and Japanese proverbs.The second volume, produced quarterly in 1903, begins with Chinese festivals and related traditions. Other matters of interest are monuments, Confucius, a tour through the Yangtse Gorges, the city and a tidal wave at Hangzhou, Chinese music, Northern Yunnan, a collection of bronzes owned by a Chinese viceroy, the people of Fukien, foreign missionaries, the Korean school system, and much more.The third volume, which was produced in 1905-1906, is contained in a single binding, which also contains one issue from the previous volume. Accounts extend into the interior of China, beginning with Si-an-fu [Xi’an]. Other titles describe Pakhoi [Beihai] and the hinterland extending beyond, railroad development between Seoul and Fusan, the railway crossing in North Korea, the long-standing philosophy of naturalism, ancient proverbs, the lives of Chinese children, a novel by Koyo Sanjin (1867-1903). A thirteen-page account describes West Lake in Hangzhou. There is a description of Hanoi – the capital of Vietnam, and a biogeographical sketch of the island of Hokkaido, a twelve-page account on rock tombs in the Szechuan region, remarks on Fuzhou and the Min River (in an account titled The Chinese Rhine for comparison), and poisonous snakes in Middle China. We also find a short poem from Shi King [Shijing, Shih-ching], a Classic in ancient literature, which is the oldest existing collection of Chinese poetry, comprising 305 works dating from the 11th to 7th centuries BC.The classic Der Ferne Osten volumes yield so much more than what is listed here. Covering all aspects of life in the Far East, particularly China, from ancient days to the turn of the century, and profusely illustrated, they are exceedingly scarce and especially invaluable as a set so complete as this.


Carl Fink’s later involvement in war propaganda:The First World War saw the rise of state-organized propaganda as a new weapon in war. In the decade before World War I, politics began to play an important role in China’s world of newspapers. Official governmental newspapers were competing with both a rising reform press that had begun to spread from the foreign concession areas into the hinterland, and also a largely private press market especially in Shanghai, consisting of tabloid papers, literary magazines, and politically oriented newspapers. With the outbreak of war, Germany began to spread “in neutral countries the German version of the causes of the war, and the hostile intentions of its enemies.” France and Great Britain acted quickly, though uncoordinated in the beginning.In 1914, after Japan defeated Germany’s colonial forces in Shandong Province, the closure of German schools and the Qingdao newspapers, German propaganda activities were severely reduced. Nonetheless, German propaganda did continue, with the objective of maintaining friendly relations with China and influencing her from joining any war efforts on the allied side.Great Britain first concentrated on dismantling Germany’s international communication network, and in September 1915 the last German Atlantic cables were cut. Germany’s most-renowned papers, Der Ostasiatische Lloyd and the Deutsche Zeitung für China (Hua De ribao) continued to be published in Shanghai, however. These promoted news regarding science, technology, and merchandize, and included messages of German power and war victories as well as examples of Sino-German friendship.Der Ostasiatische Lloyd (OAL) was a German language newspaper published in Shanghai, China, and is the oldest German newspaper in China. It was considered to be the highest quality German language newspaper in China. Most of the content focused on economics and politics, while it also had some cultural pages. Founded as a daily newspaper in Shanghai, its third editor was Carl Fink (1861-1943), serving from 1900 to 1917. Fink changed the newspaper into a weekly publication.Fink also founded the daily newspaper “Deutsche Zeitung in China” [German Gazette in China] during the Great War.Fink’s work was applauded by many, including his peers in the field. Hartmut Walravens, author of “German Influence on the Press in China,” said “there is no doubt among specialists that the Ostasiatischer Lloyd, especially under his editorship, has been not only the first but also the best German newspaper in China.” In 1916 A.P. Winston, the author of “Chinese Finance Under the Republic,” described the newspaper, which was managed by trained scholars, as the “chief organ of the German interests in the Far East” and that the newspaper “deserves to rank with the better class of European or American journals devoted to commerce and finance.”A multi-page article titled “Propaganda in China” published by the British “North China Herald” on 1 February 1919, criticized the aforementioned German News Service edited by “the notorious Dr. Fink,” making it responsible for what it called the German “fiction factory.”The effectiveness of German propaganda was based on Germany’s positive reputation and a set of well-organized intertwined propaganda tactics. Germany transmitted news via the most powerful telegraphic transmitting station in the world at Nauen and the government affiliated Overseas Transocean Company (GmbH). Supported by neutral powers, “news were thus cabled to Asia via San Francisco and Guam to Manila and Shanghai. By May 1915, Transocean cabled 25,000 words monthly, approximately as much as Reuters.Continuing as an influencer, and advocating his political views, he was during the First World War greatly involved in spreading “friendship propaganda” to maintain Sino-German relations. During the war, although many German newspapers were forced to stop, Der Ostasiatische Lloyd, edited by Fink, continued to be published.


Carl Fink, Journalist (Biographie u. Foto in Ostasiatische Rundschau, 22.Jhg., 1941, S. 67. Außerdem DBE 3, S.302)29.3.1861 in Lübeck. Er studierte an den Univ. Leipzig und Berlin Rechts- und Staats-wissenschaften. Nach einem Aufenthalt in Mexiko und Mittelamerika arbeitete er seit 1888 als Journalist in den USA. Anschließend mehrere Jahre in Deutschland tätig. 1898 wurde er nach Shanghai berufen, wo er bis 1917 Herausgeber und Chefredakteur der Wochenzeitung “Der Ostasiatische Lloyd” war. Für Tsingtau schuf er ab 1.11. 1904 die Tageszeitung “Tsingtauer Neueste Nachrichten”, die sich bis 1914 hielt. Die lokale Tsingtauer Wochenzeitung “Deutsch-Asiatische Warte” stellte daraufhin ihr Erscheinen ein. Er gründete in China weitere deutsche, englische und chinesische Zeitschriften und während des Weltkrieges die Tageszeitung “Deutsche Zeitung in China”. 1919 Deportierung nach Deutschland durch die Briten. Trat hier in die Schriftleitung der Transocean-Gesellschaft ein. Er redigierte die durch die Funkstation von Nauen in englischer Sprache in die ganze Welt verbreiteten politischen und wirtschaftlichen deutschen Nachrichten. Später übernahm er vorübergehend den politischen und allgemeinen Teil der “Ostasiatischen Rundschau” und (seit 1926) der “Deutschen Auslandswarte”, die Zeitschrift des Bundes der Auslandsdeutschen. Von 1929-34 leitete er die Zeitschriften des Deutschen Flottenvereins und des Verbandes der Deutschen Flottenvereine. Fink starb im Jahre 1943.

1748 ANSON VOYAGE – A SPECIAL SIGNED COPY

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ANSON, George

Title: Voyage Round the World in the Years MDCCXL, I, II, III, IV. By George Anson Esq; Commander in Chief of a Squadron of His Majesty’s Ships, Sent upon an Expedition to the South-Seas. Compiled from Papers and other Materials of the Right Honourable George Lord Anson, and Published under his Direction, by Richard Walter, M.A. Chaplain of His Majesty’s Ship the Centurion.

SUBSCRIBERS COPY OWNED BY SUBSCRIBER LISTED IN BOOK AND WITH ADDITIONAL MANUSCRIPT LEAF SIGNED BY ANSON

London: John and Paul Knapton, 1748. First Edition. Quarto, 34, 420 pages, with 42 engraved folding plates and maps. Bound in a contemporary full calf binding. Bound without the directions to binder leaf, otherwise a stunning and very clean copy of this book.

WITH THE SIGNATURE OF HENRY PENNYMAN ON THE TOP OF THE TITLE PAGE WHO IS LISTED IN THE LIST OF SUBCRIBERS AND THE BOOKPLATE OF JAMES PENNYMAN. IN ADDITION THERE IS A MANUSCRIPT LEAF – A RECEIPT FOR LOAN IN SALT – SIGNED IN THE ORIGINAL BY ANSON IN MAY 1752.

This is the official account of Anson’s voyage. England, at war with Spain in 1739, equipped eight ships under the command of George Anson to harass the Spaniards on the western coast of South America, for the purpose of cutting off Spanish supplies of wealth from the Pacific area. The Spanish fleet sent out to oppose the British ran into storms; provisions ran out and many ships were wrecked. Anson continued taking prizes during 1741-42, off the Pacific coast, and in June, 1743, captured the Manila galleon containing a vast treasure in Gold and Silver. Cox I, p. 49. Hill 1817. National Maritime Museum I, 109. Sabin 1625.

1906 Album – WATERCOLOUR PAINTINGS – South Africa Flora – BOTANY

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South Africa Botanicals
Album of Watercolour Albums
1906


[South Africa], 1906. Album of watercolours devoted to flowering plants native to South Africa. Contains 30 images hand drawn and painted recto only one per leaf, most named in manuscript by the artist. A presentation copy inscribed to front pastedown, “E. Lawdon. From J. Bincker Dec. 1906”. Oblong 8vo. sketch book made by Winsor & Newton whose label is affixed to front pastedown, with Whatman’s drawing paper, taupe cloth boards, pencil sleeve (pencil not present), and a stretch band for secure closure. Volume measures approximately 19 x 13 cm. Minor age-toning to boards, small ink marks to verso, otherwise in very good condition, internally clean and bright, A pleasing work with lovely renderings of South African flora.

Some of the flora painted in the present album include:
  •   Protea
  •   various Erica (there 860 species in South Africa)
  •   Morea (commonly known as the Cape tulip)
  •   Aloe Davyama
  •   Erythina Caffra (the African Coral tree)
  •   Ornithogalum
  •   various Gladiolous
  •   Striilitzia
  •   Vellozia retinerius
  •   Striga elegans
  •   Watsonia
  •   Crassula
  •   Hypoxis
  •   Salvia africana
  •   Gomphocarpus


The artist may be Johanna Jacoba Brincker (1842-1923, née KNAB) of Stellenbosch, South Africa. Johanna Jacoba Knab was born in South Africa, on 12 June 1842 in Stellenbosch. Little is known about Johanna, though she lived in South Africa and Southwest Africa [now Namibia] for her whole life, and she was a missionary to the Herero people, having a complete understanding of their language and customs. We get a fuller picture of her adult life through her husband, putting her in the circles of notable German Rhenish missionaries. On 10 February 1864 in Stellenbosch she married German missionary Peter Heinrich Brinckner, born 9 May 1836 in Isselhorst, Westfalen.

Brinckner had arrived in South Africa in 1863. After completing his theological training, Brincker was ordained in November 1862 and seconded to German South West Africa on 5 November 1862, with the task of proselytizing the Herero and Nama, who were at odds with one another. After an 83-day journey, he landed in Cape Town at the beginning of February 1863. In Stellenbosch, about 50 kilometers east of Cape Town, he was welcomed by missionary brothers. There he met his future wife Johanna Rath and became engaged to her. Missionary Johann Rath, who had worked with the Herero for 15 years, introduced Brincker to the Herero language.

[Incidentally, upon his arrival, the later famed Johanna Gertze (born Uerieta Kazahendike, and became the first Christian Herero woman) was employed as Peter Brincker’s housekeeper. At age 11, Uerieta had been the caretaker for the children of missionary Carl Hugo Hahn in Otjikango, present-day Gross Barmen in Namibia, and she was among missionaries for many years. She would become instrumental as a proofreader for the translation gospel works into Herero. It is through Hahn that she met Brincker.] In 1863, Brincker stepped up to continue Hahn’s mission, as Hahn had returned to Germany, exasperated by the disturbances led by Jonker Afrikaner, the last Captain of the Orlam Afrikaners who were constantly attacking the Herero people and the mission. On 15 June 1863, the most important of the Herero chiefs, Kamaherero, stood up to declare his independence from Hottentot domination, and proceeded to entrench himself at Otjimbingue. A fierce battle ensued, the Hereros defending themselves with great courage, the Hottentot losing 200 men including their leader. This event was the commencement of the Herero war of independence.

By early 1864 Peter had returned to Stellenbosch, where he married Johanna. Together, on 20 February 1864, they took over the work in the mission station of Otjikango, called Klein-Barmen, which had been founded twenty years earlier. Because of fighting between Herero and Nama, the couple had to flee to Otjimbingwe seven times over the next year and a half. In September 1865 the station in Otjikango was destroyed by the Nama and had to be painstakingly rebuilt.

In 1876, Peter Heinrich Brinckner played a role in the negotiations and establishment of a new mission station at Omburo, east of Omaruru (in present-day Namibia), to be led by Rhenish missionary Eduard Dannert. This was part of the Palgrave Commission (1876-1885), a series of diplomatic missions undertaken by Special Commissioner William Coates Palgrave to the territory of South West Africa (modern Namibia). Negotiations concerning the Omburo mission took place between Palgrave and Petrus Swartbooi from Ameib at Otjimbingwe, in May. In June, the Ovaherero chiefs and Palgrave hold the Conference of Okahandja, with missionary Brincker as translator. From 4-9 June, the Ovaherero chiefs and Palgrave held the Main Conference of Okahandja. Kambazembi did not attend. The letter to Cape Governor Barkly was signed by Maharero, Christian Wilhelm Zeraua from Omaruru, the Ovambanderu Chief, Salomo Aponda from Otjikango and Wilhelm Maharero, oldest son of Maharero. As witnesses, the letter is also signed by missionaries Peter Heinrich Brincker, Carl Ludwig Hermann Hegner and Botolf Bernhard Björklund, and traders Heinrich Kleinschmidt, Robert Lewis and JJ Christie.

He essentially spent 1879 in Germany. In early February 1880, he returned to German South West Africa with a new assignment. Instead of going back to Otjikango, he now served in Otjimbingwe as director of the Augustineum, a school for teachers and evangelists founded in 1866, where he succeeded Carl Gotthilf Büttner. The goal of the school, developed by missionary Carl Hugo Hahn, was to give the sons of the Herero leaders, and later also the Nama, a Christian education.

After nine years, in 1889, at the age of 53, Brincker had to give up active missionary service because of old age. In 1890 he moved with his wife, four sons and three daughters to Stellenbosch. There he worked on the publication of numerous ethnological and linguistic works. He was the author of an important dictionary of the Herero language. It is safe to assume that Johanna was involved in this work alongside him. He published Luther’s Small Catechism and the New Testament in Herero. He also published a substantial three-volume ethnological work titled, “Die Stämme Südwestafrikas I. Nach der Geschichte; II. Nach Sitten und Gebräuchen; III. Nach Sprachen.” [The Tribes of South-West Africa: I. Their history. II. Their manners and customs. III. Their languages.] In 1892 Brincker retired. In 1899 he was awarded an honorary doctorate from the University of Cape Town for his scientific work.

Peter and Johanna Brinckers had 8 children. When their daughter Louisa Catharina “Lucy” was born on 24 November 1875, the family lived in Damaraland, Odendaalsrus, Orange Free State. [They also had a daughter named Johanna Brincker.]

Peter died 26 November 1904, in Stellenbosch. Two years after her husband’s death, Johanna signed and dedicated the present watercolour album to a friend. Johanna survived her husband by 17 years; she died 14 January 1923 in her hometown of Stellenbosch.

Stellenbosch is a town in the Western Cape province of South Africa, situated about 50 kilometres (31 miles) east of Cape Town.

1942 Ninomiya Kinjiro – JAPAN WWII Propaganda – RICE TAX for PROFIT – Kamishibai

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Kamishibai Propaganda Play
Japanese WWII Nationalist Education
Benefits of Taxation on Rice
For Economic Stability

“Ninomiya Kinjiro”
Story Illustration Cards
In Original Portfolio
1942
“Ninomiya Kinjiro”Japan, Showa 17 [1942]. Kamishibai propaganda plays / Japanese picture show (kamishibai) illustrating the importance of taxation, specifically relating to the all-important commodity: rice. Folio. The complete work, comprising 20 offset full-colour printed illustrative cards which together form a story to educate or indoctrinate the viewer with nationalist concepts during the Second World War, each with printed story text to verso, one of the cards being the title and publishing information. Text is in Japanese. Contained in publisher’s original paper portfolio covers, with title label to front. Story cards measure approximately 38 x 26 cm. Portfolio covers measure approximately 39 x 27 x 1 cm. Some age-toning and wear to portfolio, otherwise in very good and original condition, cards retaining vivid impression, a fascinating Second World War propaganda presentation.
Japanese wartime propaganda was distributed through films, magazines and newspapers, radio, books, cartoons and the education system. Publications such as the present illustrative stories, promoted the ideal citizen’s nationalistic point of view, indoctrinating civilians to work collectively and in support of their government’s actions, even when creating some form of imposition on the citizen himself.Kamishibai are Japanese paper plays that gained popularity among children in the 1930s and were subsequently used as a medium for propaganda during World War II. Also referred to as a “Picture Card Show,” they were made for influencing youth with their engaging storylines and vivid imagery. In 1940, elementary schools were renamed “Citizen’s Schools.” Textbooks became vivid, engaging, and contained militaristic picture-books. During the course of World War II, the Japanese government attempted to indoctrinate Japanese children through education and propaganda. Both methods nationalized youth and encouraged them to support the war effort. Science curriculum, for example education taught children about agriculture so they could better assist in food production for the nation. Youth were expected to volunteer in factories and farms to replace the conscripted labor force.Additionally, “kokutai,” meaning the uniqueness of the Japanese people in having a leader with spiritual origins, was officially promulgated by the government, including a text book distributed by the Ministry of Education. The purpose of this instruction was to ensure that every child regarded himself first of all as a Japanese and was grateful for the “family polity” structure of government, with its apex in the emperor. Indeed, little effort was made during the course of the war to explain to the Japanese people what it was fought for; instead, it was presented as a chance to rally about the emperor.




By using the example of the esteemed agrarian reformer and economic savant Ninomiya Kinjiro who was born into peasantry, lost his family and home in a disaster, and overcame all odds to become a notable leader and economic reformer, this story promotes the importance of government taxation, even on basic needs such as rice.Ninomiya Kinjiro (1787-1856) was an important agrarian reformer and economic thinker of the late Edo period. His legendary diligence and studiousness as a child made him a natural exemplar for Japanese schoolchildren. At one time, most every elementary school in Japan displayed a statue depicting Ninomiya as a youth with a bundle of firewood on his back and an open book in his hand.He was born into a family of peasant farmers in Kayama, Sagami Province, Kanagawa Prefecture, in 1787 during the Edo Era. They lived in a small town near Odawara (Tokaido Post Town #9). They prospered until 1791, when catastrophic flooding destroyed most of their fields. Ninomiya’s father spent five years rebuilding the farm, but the struggle took its toll. He passed away in 1800, when Ninomiya was just 14, and the family was plunged into poverty. Two years later, Ninomiya lost his mother as well. At the age of 16, Ninomiya went to live with his uncle. During the day he toiled in his uncle’s fields; at night he studied by lamplight. Unfortunately, his uncle (like many in those days) considered learning a useless affectation for a farmer and scolded Ninomiya for the waste of lamp oil. Ninomiya remained determined and showed his initiative and ingenuity. Making use of some abandoned land, he began planting oilseed rape and trading his crop for lamp oil so that he could continue studying at his own expense.He further educated himself and overcame entrenched class divisions to become a distinguished agricultural administrator, financial innovator, and economic philosopher. On adulthood, his name became Ninomiya Sontoku, and he espoused the virtues of four principles: diligence, sincerity, modesty, charity.Despite these incessant obstacles, Ninomiya studied and worked hard, keeping his goal in mind. By the time he was 24, he had amassed 1.4 hectares of farmland and restored the family’s fortunes through a combination of good farming practices and savvy financial management. At the age of 25, Ninomiya went into service in the household of Hattori Jurobei, chief retainer to the daimyo of Odawara. Ninomiya’s main job was to assist the family’s three sons in their studies, and in this capacity he joined them for their lessons at the home of their tutor, a Confucian scholar. This allowed him to advance his own education. It was during his years serving the Hattori household that Ninomiya developed the concept of the gojoko, an early form of financial cooperative. At Ninomiya’s initiative, the servants of the Hattori household voluntarily paid into a fund, from which any of them could borrow, with interest, in times of need. All members were required to abide by Confucian ethics and repay loans reliably and promptly. The scheme was popular because the risk of default was very low, and the interest from the loans profited all the lenders. In 1820, the Odawara domain invested in a scaled-up version of Ninomiya’s concept, establishing a gojoko for all the samurai in the domain. It is widely regarded as the world’s first credit union.Next, Ninomiya was called on to rehabilitate the Hattori household’s troubled finances. He rose to the challenge intrepidly, imposing stringent austerity measures. His talents quickly came to the attention of the daimyo of Odawara, Okubo Tadazane, and in 1821 he was tapped to revitalize the failing economy of the Sakuramachi district (in present-day Tochigi Prefecture), ruled by a branch of the Okubo clan. At a time of rigid class divisions, when the warrior class monopolized the administration of the country’s feudal domains, it was virtually unheard of for a peasant to be assigned such a responsibility. Declining a substantial grant, he used his own assets, along with the money the domain was paying him, to provide low-interest financing for the purchase of farming implements and other inputs, on the understanding that profits from the sale of the crops would be applied to repayment. In this way he sought to foster personal responsibility and initiative among the villagers. Ninomiya also recognized that cooperation and solidarity were essential to the well-being of a farm community.In 1823, Ninomiya moved to Sakuramachi with his wife and son and set about revitalizing the district. Ninomiya encouraged resettlement from surrounding areas. He also promoted trading on the rice market. (When the great Tenpo Famine hit in the 1830s, Sakuramachi had a substantial stockpile of rice and consequently suffered less than much of the surrounding region.) By 1831, the final year of Ninomiya’s appointment, the potential rice yield of the district’s taxable rice fields had nearly doubled compared with 1823. Word of Ninomiya’s achievement spread, and he was subsequently drafted to lead similar programs in other districts and farming communities. By some estimates, as many as 600 villages around the country ultimately benefited from his direct guidance.
Ninomiya’s financial strategies emphasized the importance of compound interest, which was an unfamiliar concept among samurai and peasants of the day. He calculated the maturity of each interest rate for 100 years to show its significance by using the Japanese abacus (soroban). He viewed agricultural village life as communal, where surpluses from one year were invested to develop further land or saved for worse years, and shared by members of the community. He was aware that developed land had a lower tax base than established agricultural land, and he was adept at financial management which he applied to his estate. He encouraged migrants from other estates and rewarded them if they successfully established an agricultural household.He started his own financial institutions called gojoukou, which could be considered to be forerunners of modern-day credit unions. Each member of the village union could borrow interest-free funds for 100 days, while the entire membership shared the cost in case of default. The combination of land development, immigration, and communal finance all managed under the diligent use of abacuses was a success and became the standard methodology of economic development in feudal Japan.Ninomiya became a great democrat who dedicated his life to improving conditions for the common peasant folk. Sontoku’s descendants established the Hotoku movement, based in Kakegawa, to cultivate the concept of cooperative associations for both industry and agriculture.



1955 Rare DOUGLAS GORAY Art – Tibet Hill People – SIX ORIGINAL PASTEL PAINTINGHover to zoom

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Goray Douglas
– ORIGINALS –
Six Signed Pastel Paintings
Tibetan Hill People
circa 1955

Tibet, circa 1955-60. Set of six (6) original pastel portraits a of Tibetan natives, by world renowned artist Goray Douglas, with signature. Each is individually framed behind glass. Images measure approximately 32.5 x 25cm. Gold colour frames measure approximately 40 x 50 cm. Very Good Condition, exceptionally well rendered pastel paintings on grey paper laid to a wide margin mounts.These are not reprints.

These are SIX RARE ORIGINAL PAINTINGS by Douglas Goray.This set includes six very distinct and striking real personalities from the artist’s “Faces of the Hills” collection, an immense work in which he portrayed 350 individual Tibetan and Burmese subjects with exquisite likeness. Douglas is a noted Darjeeling artist, a master of portraiture, revered for his documentation of native peoples.
Goray Douglas (1920-1976) is an internationally renowned artist of Darjeeling, whose work is mainly seen in museums. One of the artist’s masterpieces, titled ‘Portrait of a Young Child’, was bought by Lord Mountbatten. Douglas’s unique style of painting in oil, pastels, watercolour, charcoal and his etchings earned him international repute. Especially remembered for his striking portraiture, self-taught and innately skilled, he painted exquisite portraits of the Tibetan hills people, which is his legacy. Most of his portraits depict people whom he met in Darjeeling. Douglas was also a soldier in the Indian Gorkha regiment, and perhaps his most famous portrait, “Ghoom Ko Budo” (an old man from Ghoom) is that of a man who travelled to his home weekly on Sundays from Ghoom to receive his ration.Born in 1920 in Maimio in British Burma (now Pyin Oo Lwin in Myanmar), he came to India following the Japanese invasion in 1942. According to his daughter, Douglas was interested in art from childhood, but the Burmese masters refused to train him. She also states that the governor of Burma insisted that he should take part in the National Art and Hand Writing Competition, where he won the gold medal in the art category, the first public recognition of his artistic talent. In the summer of 1950 he made pencil sketches Tibetan refugees living in Kalimpong, India. In 1973 he did the illustration for “Ayo Gurkha!.”Exhibitions of his works were held across Europe, including in both Darjeeling and Sikkim in 2006, thirty years after his death, called “The Faces of The Hills” where his daughter Dolly presented some of his unseen and unfinished works.


A marked feature of Tibetan costume and ornaments is the extensive use of gold and silver, jewellery, ivory and jade ornaments of substitutions. They can be carried on the various parts of the body, from head and hair plaits to ear, neck, wrist, finger, back, and waist. The typical ornaments include elegantly carved and gold or silver coated dagger, buckle and steel for flint, as well as various kinds of earrings and hair ornaments embedded with jadeite and turquoise.

1761 Monastic Vellum Document – TWO HIERONYMITE MONKS VOWS – Castle Illustration

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Official Declaration of Monastic Vows
By TWO Hieronymite Monks
Josephus Garcia
Antonio Solagurem

Double-Manuscript on Vellum
Hand-Coloured Beautifully Illustrated
With Four Original Signatures
Little-Known Burgos Monastery
1761


Diocese of Burgos [Spain], 5 October 1761. Two manuscripts on one vellum leaf, each being an illustrated manuscript vow of monastic service to the Order of Hieronymites, after the one-year probation had been completed, each elevating the writers from novice to a full Augustine monk, both of whom are pledging service to the Diocese of Burgensis [Burgos]. To one side, the declaration is by Josephus Garcia, to the other is by Antonio Solagurem. Both declarations are beautifully illustrated and coloured in manuscript, signed in the original by the new monk, and also by two of his superiors who are named in the vow. All text is in Latin. Item measures approximately 24 x 34 cm. Slightly age-toned, otherwise in very good condition, a beautifully preserved document, of which seldom survive.

An exquisite city and castle scene, possibly depicting Burgos, drawn below the statement of service and devotion by Josephus Garcia, is framed by a circle of leaves, stars and ribbon, topped by a small cross and prominent bird.

Antonio Solagurem’s motif, to verso, is very symbolic, a round frame with 24 points, the upper-most being the cross of Jesus on a mound. Below the text is a rooster which is connected to the apostle Peter and signifies both vigilance and repentance, a hen to acknowledge the ideal and maternal and self-sacrificing love of the virgin Mary, and red tulip to symbolize God’s perfect love.

Each of the two new monks sign their declarations in the original. Both are ratified by the same superiors of the monastery, Father Antonio Jose Prior, and Father Silvester Cassanova Magziten Hovrozum [sp?].

Monastic life was a respected career choice, attracting among them, the second or third sons of the aristocracy, who were not likely to inherit their father’s lands. They were often encouraged to join the church and one of the paths to a successful career was to join a monastery and receive an education there. The attraction to it varied, and was sometimes more than piety. The fact was, that there was the chance of real power if one rose to the top; and one was guaranteed decent accommodation and above average meals for life. As most monks came from a well-off background; indeed, bringing a substantial donation on entry was expected. Recruits tended to be local, as seen in the present document, but larger monasteries were able to attract people even from abroad.

Committing to communal life and a noble purpose after having been immersed into learning and practicing the eremitic ways of life for one full year, with the present document, the writers each profess permanent vows of obedience to the Church, which were once binding for life, and thus he becomes a true monk.

He claims his entitlement to the status, by including the names of his parents, and by doing so, confirming that he is ‘of free condition and born of a legitimate marriage,’ which was a common condition of acceptance into several monastic orders in the Middle Ages and even into the Early Modern Period.

He states his “completion of probation period,” and declares his vows, which includes what is known presently as a “vow of stability.” The latter is a commitment to remain at the same monastery, never seeking for a “better” place. As such, his vow is addressed namely to his two superiors and the monastery itself. He signs the bottom of the document, which is ratified by the two signatures of the named monks, who are in some form the head of the household.

[“Novices,” the young men who joined at aged 15 or older, were never permitted to be alone, unsupervised by a monk. After one year at the monastery, a novice could take their vows and become a full monk. It was not always an irreversible career choice; although rules did begin to develop from the 13th century CE that a youth could freely leave a monastery on reaching maturity.]

Some excerpts from the vow:

  “In nomino Dni. N.R.I. [Domini Nostri] Jesu Christi Benedicti Amen.”
[In the name of our Blessed Lord Jesus Christ, Amen.]

  ” Anno nativitatis eius dem millessimo septingentessimo sexagessimo Primo, die vero vigessima quinta Octobris”
[In the Year of His Birth Seventeen hundred and sixty-one, the 5th day of October]

  “Josephus Garcia legitimus Bartholome de Garcia… of … Diocesius Burgensis”
[I, Josephus Garcia, legitimate son of Bartholome de Garcia… of… the Diocese of Burgos…]

  “Expleto mex aprobationis tempore, solemnem, liberam, spontaneum que profesionem facio et promitto obedientiam Omnipotenti Deo Beatae Virginie Maria et Bto.Ptri.No. [Beatro Patro Nostro] Augustino…”
[Completed my period of probation, solemnly, freely, willingly, make the promise to obey the omnipotent deity Blessed Virgin Mary and our Holy Father Augustine… ]

  “… Priori huius Regalis conventus Burgensis… Priori Generalis totius Ordinis Eremitarum Scti. P.[Patris] N. Augustini…”
[… This Royal Conventual priory of Burgos… Priory of the Entire Order of Hieronymites of Our Father Saint Augustine…]

End Excerpts.

The Order of Hieronymites or The Order of Saint Jerome (Latin: Ordo Sancti Hieronymi, abbreviated O.S.H.) is a Catholic cloistered religious order and a common name for several congregations of hermit monks living according to the Rule of Saint Augustine, though the inspiration and model of their lives is the 5th-century hermit and biblical scholar Saint Jerome. On 18 October 1373, Pope Gregory XI issued a papal bull recognizing them as a religious order, under the Rule of Saint Augustine.

The Hieronymite congregation was formed in Spain and Italy in the fourteenth century, by a movement and amalgamation of several groups of hermits, and the sovereign pontiffs, while granting it their approval, imposed upon it the rule of St. Augustine, though the name of St. Jerome, whom the religious had chosen as their model and patron, was retained. By the year 1415, their houses numbered twenty-five. in that year, they were united by the pope and given the status of an exempt Order, free from episcopal jurisdiction.

The Order, from its outset, enjoyed great favor from the king of Spain, and soon possessed some of the most famous monasteries in the Iberian Peninsula. So close was its relationship to the Papacy during the early phase of colonization, that between 1516 and 1518, the Island of Hispaniola was governed directly by the Hieronymite order, which had itself been a creation of King Alfonso XI of Castile

The Hieronymites also became celebrated for their generous almsgiving. Though their way of life was very austere, the Hieronymites also devoted themselves to study and to active ministry, possessing great influence at the courts both of Spain and of Portugal. The authority which they gained from so holy a manner of living allowed of their being employed efficaciously in the reformation of other religious orders. It was by their help that St. John of God was enabled to found his first hospital. They went to both Spanish and Portuguese America and played a considerable part in bringing Christianity to the peoples of the New World. The government of the island of San Domingo was at first confided to them. Many of them have been raised to the episcopal dignity.

The men’s branch of the Hieronymites of Spain was suppressed in 1835. In other regions it was earlier. At that time, there were 48 monasteries with about a thousand monks. Most of the monastery buildings fell into ruins, others were given to other religious orders, still others became breweries, barns, or holiday homes. The literary activity of this order has been confined to Spain and Portugal.

They are also referred to informally as Jeronimos, Hieronymite monks, or simply hermits or eremites.

1736 Parliament Edict – ROAD BUILDING TOLLS AND DUTIES – Maidstone Exempted

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Road Building Edict
From the Reign of George II
Tolls and Duties in Kent
Exempting Maidstone Residents
1736


London, 1736. Official Act of Parliament issued by the British Government, to explain and amend a previous act for the repairing and enlarging of county roads in the environs of Rochester in Medway and Maidstone in Kent. Folio. 5 pages, with two woodcuts engravings, one being the national arms of King George II. Printed in 1736 by John Baskett, Printer to the King, on three leafs, laid paper, measuring approximately 19 x 28,5 cm. Minor loss to bottom left margin, unobtrusive to text, otherwise in very good condition, beautifully preserved, clean and bright.

The present document suggests the government’s plans and support toward the development of the town of Maidstone, exempting road builders, farmers, gardeners and town residents of road tolls and carriage duties previously payable, and presumably, still applicable elsewhere.

At the Westminster Parliament 14 January 1734, King George II instituted “An Act for repairing and enlarging the Road” from Rochester to Maidstone, and others in Kent, by charging tolls and cargo taxes. The act was extended on 15 January 1735, and amended in 1736, the details of which are described herein.

[During the English Civil War, the Battle of Maidstone took place in 1648, resulting in a victory for the Parliamentarians. Andrew Broughton, who was Mayor of Maidstone in 1649 declared the death sentence on Charles I, and today a plaque in Maidstone Town Centre memorialises Broughton as “Mayor and Regicide”. Paper mills, stone quarrying, brewing and the cloth industry have all flourished here. The paper maker James Whatman and his son invented wove paper (Whatman paper) at Turkey Mill from 1740, an important development in the history of printing which took place only four years after the making of this document.]

Excerpts from the document:
  “An act to explain and amend an Act passed in the first year of the Reign of His present Majesty…for repairing and enlarging the road leading from the House called The Sign of the Bells, in the Parish of St. Margaret un Rochester, to Maidstone, and other Roads therein mentioned in the County of Kent.”
  “… several persons, carriages, matters, and things are exempted and discharged from the payment of the several Tolls and Duties to be taken at the several Gates and Turnpikes to be erected by virtue of the said Act…”
  “… after the twenty fifth day of March, one thousand seven hundred and thirty six, no person or persons shall be charged… any tolls or duties… who shall pass… with any Carriage carrying any stones, gravel, or other materials, for repairing roads or highways, or any dung, sand, grit or mould for manuring of lands or gardens, nor any horses, waggons, wasns, carts or other carriages carrying undried hops from the hop-grounds to the kilns… in or about Maidstone… nor for carriages carrying hay or fodder to be laid up in the houses, hut-houses, barns or stables of the several inhabitants…”
  “And it be further enacted… so much of the highway or pass-road leading from Rochester to the town of Maidstone, as lies between a place called The Lady Taylor’s White Gate… and the way-post now standing at the north end of the said town…”
End excerpts.

1704 Illustrated Manuscript – FRANCISCAN THIRD ORDER – Anti-Slavery Symbolism

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Illustrated Latin Manuscript
Franciscan Third Order
Early Writings for Lay Preachers
With Fascinating Symbolism
Of Anti-Slavery
1704
19 June 1704. Manuscript leaf introducing an early work of translation by a Franciscan Friar of the Third Order, hand painted in full colour and featuring fascinating symbolism. Text is in Latin. Leaf measures approximately 34 x 49 cm. One soft fold, minor age-toning, otherwise in very good condition, a beautifully preserved hand painted document made at the turn of the 18th century.The present document suggests that as membership of the Franciscan Third Order grew rapidly, and no formal papal education was being received by those preaching in the streets, there was a need for some form of instruction or guidance. As such, some of the key and simple canonical documents began being written for the laymen/women to understand the principles. The symbolism features intimation of anti-slavery.


Purposed with works of teaching the gospel, providing charity, and social well-being for the public, early members of the Franciscan Third Order were a community focused on truth and humility, striving to emulate Christ and model a pure life.The symbolism in the manuscript illustration of the present document is fascinating and enlightening, in particular the focal image top and center. This is an armorial motif depicting slavery, rather the Catholic church’s purported desire to slavery. Unlike the standard Moor’s head seen in the papal coat of arms seen since early days, the imagery here features an African tribal warrior chief, all seen but his legs, with a confident stance and holding a spear up high in declaration; this is drawn inside of a gold shield topped with the pope’s mitre simplex headdress. As a whole, this could be interpreted as the Franciscan Third Order’s support to abolish slavery.[In 1639 Pope Urban VIII forbade the slavery of the Indians of Brazil, Paraguay, and the West Indies, yet he purchased non-Indian slaves for himself from the Knights of Malta, probably for the Papal galleys. The Knights of Malta attacked pirates and Muslim shipping, and their base became a centre for slave trading, selling captured North Africans and Turks. Malta remained a slave market until well into the late 18th century. It required a thousand slaves to equip merely the galleys of the Order. The 18th century saw both the slave colonies in the New World become very important economically to Britain and France as well as Spain and Portugal, and also the growth of opposition to slavery in principle, leading to political movements for the abolition of slavery. This was related to the Enlightenment but generally based on Christian ethical principles. One of the earliest French Catholic intellectuals and notable writer against slavery was Montesquieu who published a treatise on the subject in 1748.]Some of the more common instances of symbolism are the red ribbons to signify the Blood which Christ, and the laurel leafs in a circular placement as in the ancient Greek custom of symbolising victory, honor, and peace, in this case being victory over sin, honor to the Holy one, and peace on earth. There are also two large gilt fleur-de-lis, which is often said to from 1244 in the arms of the Kings of France, although clearly used earlier as this document precedes the latter event by 40 years. In early Catholic-based examples such as the present leaf, the fleur-de-lis is believed to represent either the Trinity, or the lancehead of a spear such as which would have pierced the side of Jesus on the Cross.The leaf reads as follows:“Nec citò Nec temerè.
Sub Felicibus Auspiciis Reverendiss: et Amplissimi D.D. Francisci Dignissimi Abbatis 31 hujus Caenobij, inchoatum et absolutum et scribendo hoc Opus laudis Dei & Hymnorum. A.F.P. Thoma Achmiller 43 anno å sua Professione. Ad feliciorem usum Charissimorum suorum Confratrum, quorum Orationib. Et Precibus devotissimèse comnendat.”A rough attempt at translation into English:“Without eagerness nor foolhardiness.
Under the happy auspices of the Reverend and leader D.D. Francis [Doctor Divinitatis, Doctor of Divinity], Most Noble Abbot 3i [of the Third Order], A.F.P. Thoma Achmiller of this monastery, 43 years by his profession, has begun the undertaking of writing the Decree of Praise and Hymns of Praise to God, to better acquaint the brothers with the beloved oration, and devotional prayer in which we trust.”
Cropped close-up views from the document:
St. Francis of Assisi, an Italian saint, was not a priest but rather a layperson who preached the gospel to the public and quickly gained followers, eventually obtaining the approval of Pope Innocent III for his Franciscan rule of life. This event, which according to tradition, occurred on 16 April 1210, marked the official founding of the Franciscan order. The Friars Minor, or Lesser Brothers, as they came to be known, were street preachers with no possessions and only the Porziuncola as a centre.For those who could not leave their families and homes, he eventually (c. 1221) formed the Third Order of Brothers and Sisters of Penance, a lay fraternity that, without withdrawing from the world or taking religious vows, would carry out the principles of Franciscan life. As the friars became more numerous, the order extended outside Italy.The Third Order consists of religious and lay men and women who try to emulate St. Francis’s spirit by performing works of teaching, charity, and social service. Strictly speaking, the latter order consists of the Third Order Secular. Members are sometimes called tertiaries. It includes religious congregations of men and women, known as Third Order Regulars; and fraternities of men and women, Third Order Seculars. The latter do not wear a religious habit, take vows, or live in community. However, they do gather together in community on a regular basis. They make profession to live out the Gospel life and commit themselves to that living out the Gospel according to the example of Francis.

1853 COMMODORE PERRY IN JAPAN – Manuscript Account – Large Drawing – BLACK SHIPS

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Commodore Perry ‘Black Ships’ in Edo Bay
Japanese Manuscript Account
With Large Ink Drawing
Reveals Interim Measures
“Warlords to Guard the Coast”
1853


Japan, [circa July 1853]. Manuscript document describing the great consternation among the Japanese civilians, upon the arrival of Commodore Perry’s four American ships at Uraga in July 1853, and the warlords’ immediate action to guard the coast. Together with a large manuscript ink drawing depicting the “black ships”, and an accompanying drawing of a barrel transport method. All text is in Japanese. Minor creasing and age-toning, otherwise items are in very good condition, beautifully preserved contemporary documentation by a Japanese civilian observing the events as they unfolded.

Document: 8vo. 11 pages in manuscript, written recto and verso to six folded leaves string-tied at margin. Document measures approximately 28,5 x 18,5 cm.

Drawings: Linen backed, folded leaf measuring approximately 64 x 43 cm, accompanied by a related diagram on a single leaf measuring approximately 27 x 40 cm.


A contemporary advisory of utmost urgency alerting Japanese civilians of the arrival of four formidable American vessels and the immediately appointment of warlords to protect the nation from invasion.

The manuscript begins by reporting the arrival at Uraga in Edo Bay [Tokyo Bay] on 8 July 1853 of Commodore Perry and his four “Black Ships” [war steamships Susquehanna and Mississippi, sailing sloops Plymouth and Saratoga]. Details of the ships are given, including size, one estimated at 45 ken [approximately 82 metres], number of masts, firing canons, and so forth.

The writer describes the ensuing panic among Japanese civilians, at Uraga and as far as Shinagawa, which is now part of Tokyo. [The news was travelling fast by word of mouth along the coast and trade routes, and began being illustrated with the “kawaraban” – broadsides with woodblock prints – for distribution. Naturally, Edo commoners were curious to learn about the imposing vessels that suddenly appeared within sight of their city.]

He goes on to further explain that the Feudal Lords feared of an imminent and much larger attack by a foreign power, and the final section includes a list of warlords assigned to the vital responsibility of coastal guard duty. [The Japanese had no navy with which to defend themselves. The Americans were there to impose a trade agreement, and the opening of Japanese ports to U.S. merchant ships. This was the era when all Western powers were seeking to open new markets for their manufactured goods abroad, as well as finding more raw materials for their growing industries. Perry’s small squadron itself was not enough to force the massive changes that subsequently took place in Japan, but the Japanese knew that his ships were just the beginning of Western interest in their islands. Russia, Britain, France, and Holland indeed followed Perry’s example and used their fleets to influence Japan into signing treaties granting regular relations and trade.

[Perry’s vessels imposingly sailed into Edo Bay and his crew began surveying the surrounding area. The Japanese were shaken by this unprecedented and brazen conduct. After Perry’s departure, an extensive debate ensued within the Shogunal court on how to respond to the American’s implied threats. Shogun Tokugawa Ieyoshi died within a few short days, and was succeeded by his sickly young son, Tokugawa Iesada, leaving effective administration in the hands of the Council of Elders (roju) led by Abe Masahiro. Abe felt that at the time it was impossible for Japan to resist the American demands by military force, so he polled all of the daimyos (magnates and feudal lords) for their opinions. Of the 61 known responses, 19 were in favor of accepting the American demands, 19 were equally opposed, 14 gave vague responses expressing concern of possible war, 7 suggested making temporary concessions, and 2advised that they would simply go along with whatever was decided. The only universal recommendation was that steps be taken immediately to bolster Japan’s coastal defenses. As revealed in the present document, one of the earliest steps was to assign the feudal lords to coastal defense. Fortifications were hurriedly built close to current day Odaiba in order to protect Edo from a subsequent American naval incursion. The Japanese ultimately agreed to the demands. Although many leaders wanted the foreigners expelled from the country, in 1854 a treaty was signed between the United States and Japan which, allowed trade at two ports.]


The Japanese named the American vessels “kurofune” (black ships) for the colour of the hulls which were covered in tar and for the black smoke from the coal-fired steam engines. The present drawing depicts one of Perry’s vessels double-anchored in Japanese waters, its painted black bow above the water. Billowing black smoke is drawn from the tall chimneys, and most notable is the intimidation felt by the locals represented by 26 cannon guns facing outwardly in ready position.

This is an extra large drawing, approximately 64 x 43 cm.

Close-up cropped views of the above.

This drawing is also quite large, measuring approximately 27 x 40 cm.

Close-up cropped view of the above.


The ken is a traditional Japanese unit of length, equal to six Japanese feet (shaku). The exact value has varied over time and location but has generally been a little shorter than 2 meters (6 ft 7 in). It is now standardized as 1.82 m.