Books and Manuscripts from the Japan Society Library

Members and friends will be interested in the forthcoming auction at Sotheby’s London of Books and Manuscripts from the Japan Society Library. As you know, the board took the decision several years ago to dispose of this historic and valuable collection, which the Society was unable to use or maintain properly and which was gradually deteriorating. 

The online bidding period runs from 28 October – 4 November, with an exhibition at Sotheby’s, 34-35 New Bond Street, London W1A 2AA from 29 October – 1 November. Full details are here. 

Anyone wishing to view items after 1 November can do so by arrangement. Please contact Ms Kanon Ida to make an appointment.

The Japan Society Library comprises an extensive collection of books, important documents, and rare photographs on the history and development of the bilateral ties between Britain and Japan. They cover all aspects of Japanese life, culture, literature, history, science, aesthetics, and sensibility. The library also includes a collection of illustrated woodblock-printed books on a variety of topics such as Akisato Rito’s Famous Sights of the Old Capital, popular illustrated travel guides of the Edo period. Arnoldus Montanus’ Atlas Jappanensis, an example of an early European book published on Japan, sits alongside rare sets of Kokka and Japan Weekly Mail. Photographic works include albums of albumen prints on Japanese subjects by photographers such as Felice Beato, one of the first European photographers to capture life in East Asia, Hugues Krafft and Tamamura Kosaburo.