The Tale of the Genji Scroll by Morris, Ivan - 1971

Tokyo: Kodansha International Ltd, 1971. Oblong quarto. 154, (7)pp. One of 1500 copies. A thorough academic and artistic discussion of the Genji Scroll, which is generally considered the Eastern equivalent in historical significance and exemplary craftsmanship to the Bayeux Tapestry. The production of the book reflects, as much as it can, the Heian aesthetic tastes that informed the creation of the Scroll. The endpapers carry a green wash, brushed on my hand from the base upwards in the manner known as susogo, one of the types of color gradation used in Heian times for the purposes of dyeing many-layered skirts and curtains of state. The extension of the head and tail of the spine to cover part of the volume is likewise a tradition Japanese bookmaking technique. The volume's cloth covers reproduce an aristocratic Heian wave design, rendered in royal purple and a pale greyish green, a combination favored in Heian-era costume. These historical details do not escape the box either; the safflower cloth covering the box was used only by high-ranking nobility, and the interior lining of gold-touched handmade rice paper mirrors the decorated paper used for the Genji Scroll's sheets of calligraphy. Altogether a sumptuous volume, fine save some bumps to box corners and faint soiling to upper lid.