Description
- Abstract:
- Portion of framed scroll, dated 1854 according to the Preservation Society of Newport County; executed by Japanese artists to document Commodore Matthew Perry's opening of trade with Japan.
- Notes:
- Owned by the Preservation Society of Newport County.
- Translation (right to left): 1. ARTIST'S COMMENTARY: Written characters are a means of depicting people's minds, and pictures are a means of depicting the shapes of things. There are certain methods for depicting minds with characters and for depicting shapes with pictures. If such methods are properly applied, depictions will clearly reveal style and refinement. Pictures which exhibit the movement of brush tips and show refinement throughout the surface of the paper can make viewers hear sounds or soundless poems. The excellence of such pictures cannot be expressed in words. Well, let us put this subject aside for now. An ancient man once said that characters are adequate when people's names are written with them and that pictures are adequate when drawn as the artist's mind directs. Characters are useful simply for supplementing what records cannot cover. If characters and pictures are used effectively, that is all that can be asked for. Last year American ships came to Uraga, Sagami Province with a letter from the American President. They have now come again and anchored off Kanagawa, Musashi Province. There were certain persons who compiled detailed written reports and records relating to all these events. The master immediately ordered those close to him to make copies of these records. This copy is called Kichu-koin Zakki. The master also obtained two volumes of Isen Jimbutsu Shozu and ordered me to copy them. I have never studied drawing or painting, and therefore I do not have a good knowledge of the use of brushes or colors. Nor do I know any other matters relating to pictures. I simply did my best to copy them, but I am afraid I may have missed something in doing so. As for the portraits of foreign men, although I copied them very carefully, I am afraid that they bear only a slight resemblance to the original pictures. My copies are not worth showing to people in a high position. These copies can only supplement what the Kichu-koin Zakki could not completely depict. Since these drawings are not done well enough to be shown to people in a high position, I am afraid that I may be reprimanded for submitting such inferior work. That is why I have added this note to these artless drawings, and I would be very happy to answer any questions on these matters. The beginning of July, the 7th year of Kaei (1854) Respectfully written by Tamemasa Yoshida 2. THE ILLUSTRATIONS - in color: a. Interpreter - S. Wells Williams - portrait head. b. Same - full picture c. Robert Danby - indication of which is his first name and which is his family name. He is on MISSISSIPPI; his clothes are of navy blue wool. d. Same - full picture. e. Commander - no name - feathered hat. f. Soldier - front view. His clothes are "flower color". g. Soldier - clothes are black woolen cloth. h. Commander - chevrons on sleeves, clothes of navy blue wool. i. Musician - back view only. j. & k. No explanation. l. Dutch interpreter - wearing red cape. m. Officer.
Access Conditions
- Rights
- No Copyright - United States
- Restrictions on Use
- Collection is open for research.
Citation
"Text panel and 14 portraits"
(1854).
Perry in Japan: a visual history.
Brown Digital Repository. Brown University Library.
https://repository.library.brown.edu/studio/item/bdr:304918/
Relations
Collection:
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Perry in Japan: a visual history
Materials for use in cross-cultural evaluation of Perry's encounter with the Japanese....