Kobayashi Eitaku - The Tongue - Cut Sparrow - 1885

This is the cover of a famous Japanese illustrated booklet titled "The Tongue-Cut Sparrow" (in Japanese: Shita-kiri Suzume), part of the Japanese Fairy Tale Series (Serie di fiabe giapponesi).
Here are the main details:
Story: It is a traditional Japanese fairy tale about an elderly kind man, his greedy wife, and a sparrow. The story explores themes of kindness rewarded and greed punished.
Physical characteristics: The book is a classic example of chirimen-bon (book in crepe paper). These publications were popular from the late 19th to the early 20th century; they were printed on ordinary paper and then subjected to a mechanical process to obtain that particular fabric-like texture.
Publisher: This series was conceived and published by Takejiro Hasegawa in Tokyo, starting from 1885, with the aim of making Japanese folklore known to foreigners (hence the text is in English).
Illustrations: The artistic style is ukiyo-e, characterized by precise lines and vivid colors, typical of the Meiji era.
It is a fascinating antique piece, highly valued by collectors for its handmade craft and its historical-cultural value.

Published with a crepe-paper sewn cover, slightly worn and with minor signs of preservation at the edges (covers show light stains along the edges). The book is free of ownership marks. The text is clean and free of annotations. The binding is solid and compact.

Private collection

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