Kono Bairei (1678-1757) Chigusa no Hana [1000 varieties of flowers]

Kono Bairei (1678-1757)
Chigusa no Hana (trans. 1000 varieties of flowers)
Tokyo: Tanaka Jihei, 1862
Stitched cloth with blue paper boards, blue
cloth clamshell box, blue morocco lettering-piece. Volume iii of 3.
Octavo 242 x 165mm

47 colored woodblock plates on 54 leaves (including 7 ‘diptych’ plates.) Stitched
with cloth head-bands within limp blue paper covered boards, later calligraphic
title on mounted section on upper cover (some light scuffing and discoloration),
modern blue cloth box, blue morocco lettering-piece.

A fine example of Meiji era kacho-e (bird and flower images), featuring 47
woodblock plates of various flower varieties. An introductory table containing information on the chinese and japanese names, flower type, genus, local, flowering season, and more proceeds the polychrome plates. Accompanying the illustrated plates of the flowers are physical descriptions of each flower and their foliage printed within the plate image.