November 4 The whole Chuo-ku Museum 2018 was held, and there were many joint events with companies that could not be visited by the general public. One of them, I participated in the printing experience of a guide printing press at the Mizuno Printing Museum in Irifune 2-chome.
Colombian Press Machine Manufactured in 1850 U.K.
I am surprised at the darkness of the printing press that I see for the first time on the floor and its size. The first iron printing press in the world was U.K. around 1800.
Albion Press Machine Manufactured in 1860 U.K.
What I experienced was the Albion press machine manufactured in U.K. in 1860. It is said that it is compact and simpler than the original machine, but the handle is heavy and you can see how hard the printing industry was working.
On this printing press, William Morris, who is still popular as a Morris pattern at the back and bedding sections of department stores, printed "Chaucer's Book", one of the most beautiful books in the world.
I'm breathtakingly impressed by the fine decorations drawn by Morris and the beauty of illustrations. After the book was completed, Morris discarded all the prints and decorations used to avoid being imitated.
When these Colombian press machines and Albion press machines were imported in the Meiji period, Tomiji Hirano of Tsukiji Printing Works, which pioneered printing in Japan, began to manufacture domestic printing machines.
In a book by a person related to Chuo-ku, there was Yukichi Fukuzawa's "Recommendation of Learning".
The first edition was published in 1872, and a total of 17 editions were published in 1876. This book has become a major bestseller of 3.5 million copies throughout the Meiji era, but the first edition of this collection is one of the 10 copies that have been confirmed.
In addition, there was a tour report of the Iwakura Mission, which was dispatched for about two years from November 1871 to 1873. (Saigo Takamori, who lived at 1-chome Nihonbashi Ningyocho, was in charge of the absence government during this time.)
The "Special Mission Ambassador to the United States and Europe Circulars" is printed in a type cast by Fumiji Hirano and Shozo Motoki of Nagasaki (which determines the later Ming Dynasty typeface). In addition, this book is a publication of Ginza 4-chome Hakumonsha, as evidence of the historical fact that printing-related companies gathered in the Ginza brick street in the early Meiji era.
Today's introduction is a very part of the Mizuno Printing Museum, which was collected in the spirit of "preventing the culture where printing exists", but it was the whole Chuo-ku museum where it was an opportunity to meet valuable collections.
You usually need to make a reservation for this tour. If you wish, please contact us at 03-3551-7595 in advance. Since there is only one guide, thank you very much.
