Kurofune kawaraban - Title: Kaisei Taiheikan - Description: After Perry's initial visit in 1853, the defense of Japan became paramount and defense or peace (taihei) prints began to appear. When Perry returned a year later, his ships were added to many prints, such as this one. This is called a 'revised' map. - Dimensions: 40 x 61 cm, 1854

Kawaraban appeared in various sizes and were mass produced using cheap materials. Thus, although millions were produced at a time, they were not made for preservation and relatively few survive today. The most common topics covered include gossip, crime, natural disasters, and the arrival of Commodore Matthew C. Perry’s ships. Kawaraban specifically about Commodore Perry and his fleet are known as kurofune (black ship) kawaraban. This collection primarily includes kawaraban from the late Edo period (1800-1868) and early Meiji era (1868-1912), with very limited material from the 1920s as well.