Historical Setting

Yokohama is a port town on Tokyo Bay, and was only miles south of the Tokugawa Shogunate capital in Edo (modern day Tokyo). This port served as an international trading site after the end of the national isolation policy in 1858.

 

 

 

 

 

Edo Period Japan

 The Edo Period in Japan runs from 1603-1868, and began when the Tokugawa family was able to unite the country (through military use and political tactics) and ending a long period of civil war. During this period of relative peace the woodblock printing industry booked due to the rise in literacy rates, and a growing urban population with disposable income. By the late Edo period it is estimated there were 200 publishers in Edo alone (modern Tokyo).[1] Technological improvements over the Edo period morphed the woodblock image from simple line, monochrome prints to those contained upwards of 10 colors, creating the colorful and finely detailed prints that come to mind when most recall Japanese woodblock prints.[2]

The publishing industry in the Edo period was a complex network of the print designer (or artist), the publisher, woodblock carvers, and printers. Each of these entities had important roles they played in the production of woodblock prints and often individual artisans would work for several different publishers.[3] For this reason the social connections were very important in the Edo period printing industry and the visualization of these networks between publishers, designers and carvers is important (please see the Data Visualization page). Publishers also often released multiple versions of the same print design with color varriations or deluxe features. Below is a comparison of two prints of the same design with two different color schemes.