Japan rare books

Hand-coloured woodblock prints on handmade rice paper, each numbered and captioned at top, each outlined in ink. Framed in perspex frames; overall size: 49 by 36.7cm.

First edition, first impression; 8vo; wartime paper stock browning as all too often, title page substantially foxed from the tissue guard, Japanese bookshop 'chop' to front free endpaper, pages entirely uncut;publisher's blue cloth, device to upper board in black, titles to spine gilt, with the printed dust jacket; browning notwithstanding, a truly exceptional copy of a vulnerable book in the original printed dust jacket, with trivial loss at the spine and two corners and a couple of closed snags to the rear panel.

Second edition; oblong 8vo (18.5 x 28 cm); 82 black and white engravings, many printed recto and verso, 4 pages of introductory text printed on 3 leaves, single printed contents leaf at end, some light offsetting, occasional marginal annotations in pencil, some edges trimmed; modern black half morocco over green boards, green label with gilt lettering to upper cover, a fine copy.

First edition, 4to, xvi, 222, cxxx, [lxxii] pp., 7 aquatint plates, all but one hand-coloured, 5 engraved maps, contemporary calf gilt, black morocco lettering piece, lightly rubbed, a very good example.

Six oban tate-e woodblock prints of okubi-e (bust portraits) of beauties, titled Jidai kagami [Mirror of the Ages], documenting the fashions of former times (from the Keicho to the Meiji era) in chronological order, each sheet with a beautiful woman in sumptuous costume depicted at the lower section and a rectangular panel at the top which makes a reference to the era, some sheets with lacquer and embossed details, published by Matsuki Heikichi, variously dated Meiji 29, 30 and 31 (1896-8), all signed Yoshu Chikanobu. Each sheet approx. 36 x 23.7 cm (14 1/8 x 9 3/8 in), framed and glazed.

Title page and 55 of 56 prints (lacking the station Goyu), each sheet in chuban tate-e format (25 x 18.5cm approx.) Contemporary boards, with fuchsia pink decorative endpapers.

15 x 8 cms, title, 52pp., text, 2 coloured woodblock prints (1 double-page), original blue wrappers, title to wrapper, stitched as issued, original(ý) fold-over protective case, modern blue morocco-backed box, small worm track slightly affecting last 3 leaves, else a fine example.

First edition. 4 text vols, 4to (30 x 23 cms) and folio atlas (58 x 45 cms), engraved portrait of La Pérouse after Tardieu, atlas with engraved allegorical title-page by Moreau le Jeune, titled Atlas du voyage de La Pérouse without imprint, and 69 engraved plates comprising folding world map, 35 views and natural history plates, 33 maps or coastal profiles (of which 20 double-page). Text volumes contemporary half-calf, marbled boards, chip to head of spine vol. I, light marginal water-staining vol. II and title-page vol. III, bound without half-titles, joints vol. I cracked but sound, lightly rubbed, some scraping to boards; atlas 19th-century red morocco-backed boards, neatly rebacked, royal cypher of Prince Philippe of Belgium to cover and spine, marginal repair to tear (circa 7 cms) to blank outer margin plate 15, not touching image, occasional light foxing at beginning and end, a very good set.

Album 24 x 37 cm., 40 hand coloured woodblock prints, portraits of kabuki actors, original Japanese tanned cloth, concertina binding.

First edition. Four text volumes, 4to (31 x 23.5cm) and folio atlas (61.5 x 45cm). Engraved portrait of La Pérouse after Tardieu, all half-titles, colophon leaf in vol. I-III, vol. IV colophon following index. (vol. IV with a few minor marginal chips repaired.) Atlas with engraved allegorical title-page by Moreau le Jeune, titled Atlas du voyage de La Pérouse without imprint, and 69 engraved plates comprising folding world map, 35 views and natural history plates,33 maps or coastal profiles (20 double-page). Original pink paper covered boards, unopened and uncut, neat repairs and restoration to bindings, spines faded, covers with old residual dampstaining, modern red morocco labels, a fine set.