Signed: Anderson - The Pictorial Arts of Japan - 1886

A monumental and richly illustrated standard work on the history of Japanese art in the 19th century, here in the especially desirable author-signed deluxe issue. William Anderson's fundamental account is among the significant early Western publications on Japanese painting and its art-historical traditions.

First edition. Publisher: London, Sampson Low, Marston, Searle & Rivington, 1886. First issue. Large folio. XIX, 276 pages with 80 plates in various reproduction methods, including 16 color plates, as well as 146 text illustrations. With illustrated silk wrappers for the plates. Artist’s Proof Copy No. 72, hand-signed by William Anderson on the title page. Decorative half-leather binding with a dark green silk cover to the boards, rich spine gilding, and gold-stamped title on the boards. Painted endpapers and ex libris “G. Bowman, M.D.” with the motto “Persevere.” LARGE FOLIO 42 x 31 cm, 8.5 kg
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William Anderson was a British surgeon, art collector, and one of the most important early Western connoisseurs of Japanese art. During his stay in Japan from 1873 to 1880 he acquired extensive knowledge of the local painting and assembled a significant art collection, which later came into the possession of the British Museum.

His main work offers a comprehensive overview of the development of Japanese painting from its earliest beginnings up to the 19th century. The different schools of painting, their leading representatives, stylistic peculiarities, and artistic techniques are treated in detail. In addition, Anderson discusses the relations to Chinese and Korean art as well as neighboring art forms such as ceramics, lacquering, and decorative arts.

Of particular importance are the elaborately reproduced artworks, which for the first time allowed European readers to become acquainted with the diversity of Japanese visual traditions on a larger scale. Landscape painting, Buddhist art, portraits, animal and plant depictions, and scenes of everyday life convey an exceptionally versatile impression of the history of Japanese art.

The present copy is distinguished by its handwritten numbering and Anderson’s own signature. The special binding and the signed edition make it an attractive collectible of early European Japanese literature.
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Decorative binding more heavily worn, especially along the spine and corners. Inside, there are occasional light foxing spots, but overall this is a splendid and highly representative exemplar of this monumental work on Japan, whose extraordinarily elaborate binding, fascinating illustrations, and the author’s signature make it a special collector’s piece.