Original watercolors of Japanese life, late nineteenth century

Paper. String tied.. Very Good. N.d., late 19th century. 13.5 by 10 cm. 17 leaves. With a semi-abstract illustration of birds over the sea on the front cover, followed by 15 double paged watercolors of Japanese life. No text, no words. These illustrations do not seem to a cohesive narrative, but rather, generally, they depict upper echelon life, with some perhaps capturing theatrical performances of such. We see samurai or warriors, women and men dining on a ship, gathering of men and of women, at times, engaged in ritual of one sort or another, women by a waterfall, and so forth. We are not certain how to interpret the artwork, which hovers between realistic and stylized, as so much Japanese artwork of the period does, but there can be little denying that the original watercolors are indeed a colorful eyeful and overall, very evocative of Japanese life and charm. Moderate wear.