Photograph of the Kan-ei Woodblock Kochō Chapter

What it is

This 1930 photograph by 金子元臣 shows a page from a Kan-ei era woodblock-printed edition of a chapter of The Tale of Genji. It appeared as a frontispiece in a scholarly edition of the novel.

Why it matters

Murasaki Shikibu wrote her novel in the early 11th century, long before printing existed in Japan. This photograph shows how, centuries later, the story was reproduced using woodblock printing, letting many more readers access it.

Look closer

• How does a printed page look different from a handwritten manuscript page?
• Why might printing a text change how widely it could be read?
• What does the survival of many different editions tell you about the novel's popularity?