Mata Yakinaosu Hachikazuki Hime: Kusazōshi Kojitsuke Nendaiki (The Re-Baked Bowl-Crowned Princess: A Contorted History of Illustrated Fiction)

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Mata Yakinaosu Hachikazuki Hime: Kusazōshi Kojitsuke Nendaiki ["The Re-Baked Bowl-Crowned Princess: A Contorted History of Illustrated Fiction"]

Shikitei, Sanba [text and illustrations by].

[Edo: Nishinomiya Shinroku, Kyōwa 2 (1802)].

Written and illustrated by the acclaimed kusazōshi author Shikitei Sanba (1776-1822), Kusazōshi Kojitsuke Nendaiki narrates the transition from the akahon, kurohon, and aohon genres to the contemporary kibyōshi through the story of Princess Hachikazuki. Barbara Cross states that the work "tells the traditional fairy story of a princess who is cursed to wear a pot on her head, whilst constituting a history of the authors, illustrators and publishers involved in the production of kusazōshi from the early Edo period".¹ Cross adds that the book "is also a chronological record of narrative styles and book formats: Sanba achieves this by writing and illustrating in the manner of each period as the story progresses".² Andrew Markus similarly describes the book as a "work primarily designed to demonstrate past phases in the artistic and literary evolution of the popular kusazōshi 'chapbook'".³ Among the many styles mimicked by Sanba are those of Moronobu, Kiyonaga, Utamaro, and Toyokuni. Examples of publishing seals of jihon doiya, famous authors' names and signatures, and an allegorical map of the names of well-known illustrators are included at the front of the book. A list of notable artists' names (ordered in several categories) is also featured. Sanba's comments on the genres offer fascinating insights into how readers appraised and approached the texts. A scarce and important work in the history of Japanese bibliography.

One four-hole-bound (yotsumetoji) volume, complete, on double leaves, traditional East Asian binding style (fukurotoji). Non-original wrappers, worn, creased, and stained. Losses to corners, most prominent on first leaf. Occasional stains, marks, and soiling internally. Leaves backed with washi. 15 leaves. 17.7 x 12.8 cm.

 1. Cross, Barbara Jane. Reading fiction as performance: Shikitei Sanba (1776-1822) and woodblock print. PhD thesis. 2006. SOAS University of London.

2. Ibid.

3. Markus, Andrew L. “The Carnival of Edo: Misemono Spectacles From Contemporary Accounts.” Harvard Journal of Asiatic Studies 45, no. 2 (1985): 499–541. 

Mata Yakinaosu Hachikazuki Hime: Kusazōshi Kojitsuke Nendaiki (The Re-Baked Bowl-Crowned Princess: A Contorted History of Illustrated Fiction)
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