OLD PHOTOS of JAPAN, a photo blog of Japan in the Meiji, Taisho and Showa periods

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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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Ainu: Spirit of a Northern People • William W. Fitzhugh et al
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Japan’s indigenous people, the Ainu, inhabited Hokkaido, the Kurile Islands, southern Sakhalin Island, and a portion of northern Honshu. They had a unique culture and language, completely separate from that of the Japanese. By the middle of the 19th century, the destruction of this ancient culture was set in motion by Japan’s national government.


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Yokohama 1930 • Bentendori

Tags: UnknownShowaYokohama
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Benten-dori in Yokohama, Japan (1930).

Yokohama’s Bentendori was a popular shopping street that lost most of its charm when it was destroyed during the Great Kanto Earthquake of 1923. This photo shows the rebuilt Bentendori. Interesting is the Ten Sens Store (1 sen was one hundredth of a yen so this was basically a Ten Cents Store) on the right. These days, 100 yen stores are very popular in Japan. Except for the price itself, not much seems to have changed. For a photo of the original Bentendori, see Yokohama 1890s • Bentendori.

This glass slide is one of a series of slides of Japan that was used by the New York State Education Department to teach students about Japan.

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Photographer: Unknown
Publisher: New York State Education Department
Medium: Glass Slide
Image Number: 80122-0010
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<a href="http://oldphotosjapan.com/en/photos/451/bentendori-1930">Yokohama 1930 • Bentendori</a>

Yokohama’s Bentendori was a popular shopping street that lost most of its charm when it was destroyed during the Great Kanto Earthquake of 1923. This photo shows the rebuilt Bentendori. Interesting is the Ten Sens Store (1 sen was one hundredth of a yen so this was basically a Ten Cents Store) on the right. These days, 100 yen stores are very popular in Japan. Except for the price itself, not much seems to have changed. For a photo of the original Bentendori, see Yokohama 1890s • Bentendori.

Thumbnail URL: http://oldphotosjapan.com/images/226t.jpg
Posted by Kjeld Duits • 2008-10-29
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