Title: Namazu-e (catfish print)
Date: 1855
Original Format: photograph: negative
Description: 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 the people who suffered from the effects of the earthquake are trying to punish two Namazu.
Collection: Fine Art
Caltech Archives ID: FA-PR-0002
