Suizokuzufu, a five-volume pictorial book edited by Hotta Tatsunosuke and illustrated by Mori Kanzan; 1880;
held in the collection of the Wakayama City Museum
The Suizokuzufu pictorial book was created by Hotta Tatsunosuke and others by adding colored illustrations to and reediting Suizokushi (authored by Kuroda Suizan, a natural historian of the Kishu domain.) Suizokushi was reprinted by Tanaka Yoshio and others in 1884. A letter sent by Tanaka Yoshio to Hotta Tatsunosuke to discuss the publication of Suizokushi is held in the Hotta Collection
Crimson sea bream from Suizokuzufu (vol.1)
Kogyokikan created by Fujii Jukei: a pair of six-panel folding screens with illustrations of lake fish and poems attached to them; the 19th century;
held in the Hotta Collection of the Osaka Museum of History
These folding screens are considered to have been created by Fujii Jukei (year of birth and death unknown), a feudal retainer of the Hikone domain. On the panels, illustrations and descriptions of fish and aquatic organisms of Lake Biwa are attached, as well as a number of Chinese-style poems about the fish and aquatic organisms, which were written by literary persons in the Omi area. Together these allow us a glimpse of the high cultural level of local literary persons along with the fauna of the lake, and contribute to a highly interesting work.
While similar works (e.g. bound books and handscrolls) said to have been created by Fujii Jukei are held in various institutions in Japan and abroad, many of these works are reproductions, which, unlike this work, lack the signature/seal of the creator, date of production, and inscriptions written by literary persons. Their inclusion here highlights the rarity and value of this work.
Right section of the pair of six-panel folding screens
Collection of shell specimens; the 19th century;
held in the collection of Osaka Museum of Natural History
While Hotta Tatsunosuke’s collection was donated to the Osaka Museum of History by the Hotta family in 1970, these shell specimens are now held by the Osaka Museum of Natural History.
Hotta Tatsunosuke collected about 20 boxes of shell and mineral specimens. The shell specimens are given brief descriptions, which are considered to have been written by Hotta Tatsunosuke himself. While the Hotta Collection held by the Osaka Museum of History includes a booklet containing shell illustrations, these shell specimens show that his interest in natural science drove him to collect real specimens, in addition to illustrations, and thus are highly valuable.
Part of Hotta Tatsunosuke’s collection of shell specimens
