Namazu-e (catfish print)
1855
- Title
- Namazu-e (catfish print)
- Collection
- Caltech Images Collection
- Series
- Fine Art Photographs
- Identifier
- FA-PR-0006
- Dates
- 1855
- Extents
- 1 photographs (negative)
- Abstract
- According to Japanese legend, earthquakes were caused by the movements of a monster catfish that lived under the island of Japan. Immediately following the great Ansei earthquake of October 2, 1855, woodblock prints called Namazu-e (“catfish pictures”) appeared in Edo (now Tokyo), the most affected area. These imaginative and sometimes brutal depictions served as a unique source of information and reassurance to the local population. Here an expert is giving a lecture on the monster Namazu and pointing out the postion of the great stone which is supposed to keep it from violence.