[TERAJIMA, Ryōan]

[TERAJIMA, Ryōan], Wakan Sansai Zue (和漢三才図会).

Japan, early 19th century.

 

 

 

£ 2,500

 

4to. 25.8 x 17.2 cm, stitched wrappers with cover label. 30 double-page leaves, containing numerous astronomical charts and diagrams, some heightened with red. A fine copy in crisp condition.

 

This book contains the second chapter of an extremely popular illustrated Chinese encyclopedia that was translated into Japanese in 1712 by a doctor from Osaka named  Terajima Ryōan. The encyclopedia was composed of 105 chapters divided into 81 volumes. The first six chapters dealt with the ‘heavens’, whereas the following chapters were dedicated to people and their work and the last section to natural history.