shows photos of Japan between the 1860s and 1930s. In 1854, Japan opened its doors to the outside world for the first time in more than 200 years. It set in motion a truly astounding transformation. As fate would have it, photography had just been invented. As the old country vanished and a new one was born, daring photographers took photos. Discover what life was like with their rare and precious photographs of old Japan.

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01/01/2027 (Friday)

Unbeaten Tracks in Japan • Isabella L. Bird

In 1878, just 19 years after Japan opened it first ports to the world, and a mere ten years after the fall of the Tokugawa Shogunate, an adventurous 47-year old woman from the UK set out to explore the interior of Japan. The country was virtually unknown to Westerners, and a woman traveling only with a guide seemed outrageous. Everybody advised her not to, but she went anyway and wrote this unique and vivid journal of what she saw and experienced.

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« Ebisu Shrine and Harbor • View from Yamate »

Tags: Unknown • Meiji • Kyoto • City Views
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The entertainment district of Gion in Kyoto as seen from the steps of Yasaka Shrine. The street is flanked with a multitude of teahouses where customers could enjoy food, dance and music. The tower on the left is part of Yasaka Elementary School (弥栄小学校), established in 1869 (Meiji 2). The school’s tower was used as a lookout and to mark the time, every two hours a drum inside the lookout was sounded. Electricity poles already line the street. Kyoto’s electricity company, Kyoto Dento Gaisha (京都電灯会社), started operations in July 1889 (Meiji 22), so this photograph was taken after this date. Right in front of the pole next to Yasaka Elementary School, a gaslight can also be seen. Kyoto is rapidly modernizing itself.

Gion’s Shijo-dori was originally only about 5.5 meters wide. But in 1874 (Meiji 7) it was widened to 9 meters. In 1912 (Taisho 1) it was once again widened, this time to 22 meters. This made it possible for streetcars to ply Shijo-dori. At the same time, Shijo Ohashi, the bridge which is located around the spot where the street on this image disappears, was also widened. Although the changes may have happened gradually, in the end they were quite drastic. When you stand on the steps of Yasaka Shrine today, you look at a completely different scene, dominated by noisy cars and concrete buildings instead of people and wood.

A detail of the photo above shows rickshaws carrying soldiers, women in kimono carrying paper parasols, a vendor with his wares, men wearing Western hats, and curious children. No cars; streets still belonged to people.

The rickshaws, the women in kimono with paper parasols and the traditional wooden architecture make this photo the quintessential image of traditional Japan. Kyoto’s Gion is these days considered to be one of the most traditional parts of one of Japan’s most traditional towns. But, at the time that this seemingly traditionally looking photo was taken, Kyoto was actually considered to be a modern town which experimented enthusiastically with modernization.

Kyoto had the first experiments with film projection, the first public schools and the first hydro-electric power station. It was one of the first cities to run streetcars and develop an electricity network, and so on. Visionary leadership catapulted the city into the modern world setting an inspiring example to the rest of the country.

The legacy of this foresight is still visible in the city’s excellent universities and highly competitive high-tech industry. Today Kyoto is the home of companies like Kyocera, Nintendo, Murata and Rohm and houses the largest agglomeration of IT companies outside Tokyo’s Shibuya. Although the city still nurtures many of Japan’s traditional crafts and occupations, Kyoto’s image as a traditional town with people who cling stubbornly to the past is clearly not completely true.

Change is Kyoto’s tradition. Actually, this may be true for most of Japan. Highly respected scholar and translator Edward Seidensticker (1921-2007) said it very beautifully: “The relationship between tradition and change in Japan has always been complicated by the fact that change is in itself a tradition.” In Japan there is almost always a strong undercurrent of positive acceptance of change. Too bad that not all change is for the better.

Photographer: Unknown
Publisher: Unknown
Medium: Albumen Print
Image Number: 70219-0026
Quote this number when you contact us about licensing this image

Thumbnail URL: http://oldphotosjapan.com/images/87t.jpg

Posted by Kjeld Duits • 2008-10-01

« Ebisu Shrine and Harbor • View from Yamate »

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