shows photos of Japan between the 1860s and 1930s. In 1854, Japan opened its doors to the outside world for the first time in more than 200 years. It set in motion a truly astounding transformation. As fate would have it, photography had just been invented. As the old country vanished and a new one was born, daring photographers took photos. Discover what life was like with their rare and precious photographs of old Japan.

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« New Year Celebrations 3 • New Year Celebrations 1 »

Pounding glutinous rice to make mochi rice cakes, used in the traditional New Year dishes. This image is part of The New Year in Japan, a book published by Kobe-based photographer Kozaburo Tamamura in 1906. Original text:

Our foreign friends indulge in plum pudding; our pudding, mochi (a dough of rice), is the national diet for the celebration of the New Year Era, and also for sacred celebrations during the year. Men, with boilers and dough tubs, pound the rice into dough, and nearly every family engage these dough pounders, to save time and trouble. The pounding begins about the 25th December, and continues until the end of the year.¹

See all New Year images on Old Photos of Japan.

¹ Tamamura, Kozaburo (1906). The New Year in Japan. Tamamura Shashinkan.

Photographer: Kozaburo Tamamura
Publisher: Kozaburo Tamamura
Medium: Collotype Print
Image Number 80115-0026

Quote this number when you contact us about licensing this image.
You can also licence this image online: 80115-0026 @ MeijiShowa.com.

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Posted by Kjeld Duits • 2009-01-01

« New Year Celebrations 3 • New Year Celebrations 1 »

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