Famine

20034701 — Aichi 1885 Odagiri. Grey stitched wrs. embossed covers very good bit of corner & spine wear contents clean 27 4 double folded leaves entirely woodblock printed on hand- made paper bit of old minor worming 35 color page plates. Essentially a very nice copy of a rare book. This very fasc- inating work shows the peasants suffering from the famine at its height. Illustrations show: a Samurai preparing to eat but with knowledge of peasant suffering hesitates. droves of peasants sit quietly before their feudal lord awaiting a turn to receive a bowl of food -most are clothed in Wara or rice-stalk mats for protection against the elements showing the very low level of their poverty & suffering. Others show the suffering of the common people starvation death moth- ers with dried out & withered breasts dogs and birds feed- ing on the dead cannibalism and villagers begging at the rice storehouses. With an important list of edible plants their name mushrooms & poisonous plants noted to stave off starvation. Nicely drawn by Kimura Kinshu/Kaneaki. Scans can be sent by e-mail. unknown