Unknown Artist, “Shokoku irezumi zu” 諸国入墨図 [“Illustrated Tattoos of Many Provinces”], Late Edo Period

Item — Box: 1, Folder: 5

Identifier: Series 3

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

From the Collection:

The Tattoo Flash and Artwork Collection contains sheets of tattoo flash as well as artwork created for the purposes of display within tattoo studios in order to give customers ideas for potential tattoos as well as to demonstrate the artistic style and talents of the tattoo artist.

Dates

Late Edo Period

Conditions Governing Access

Materials are open for research.

Biographical / Historical

During the Edo period irezumi kei ("tattoo punishment") was used to mark criminals, with the location of the tattoo indicating the type of crime. The current manuscript features 33 images of tattoos on the arms and 18 images of tattoos on the head (indicating the crime of murder).