The Japanese art of making scenic paper dioramas is called Tatebanko.
Tatebanko first appeared during the Edo period (1603 – 1868). It remained popular until the end of the Meiji Restoration (1868 – 1912).
Each scene is made of several multicolored construction pieces. Several pieces are printed onto a single page using traditional woodblock techniques. It takes as many as ten pages to hold all of the pieces.
A scene comes in a kit that has all of the pages and assembly instructions. You have to cut each piece from the sheet. You must score and fold each piece. Then you glue the pieces to a paper base to make the scene.
Popular kits were famous buildings, Kabuki theater, and historical scenes.
Edo Period Tatebanko
The Edo period officially began on March 24, 1603 AD. The Tokugawa shogunate established itself in the city of Edo(modern-day Tokyo). It continued until the fall of Edo on May 3, 1868 AD.
For more than 250 years, the shogunate brought peace, economic growth, and a strict feudal social order to Japan. During this time, literacy became widespread, and people enjoyed the arts and culture.
One popular entertainment was Tatebanko, which is also called Kumiage-e. The paper dioramas covered a wide range of subjects. Some of the most popular topics were famous Kabuki actors, sumo wrestlers, and scenes from history and folk tales.
They were so successful that even famous artists created scenes.
Torii Kiyotsune And The Oldest Surviving Tatebanko
Torii Kiyotsune was a Japanese artist of the Torii school of ukiyo-e art. He was active from 1760 AD – 1779 AD.
Little else is known about him.
The Library of Congress has a collection of his works, including The Harmonic Couple (printed 1756 AD).
Kanadehon Chushingura – An Iconic Japanese Legend
Since they were made to be cut apart and assembled, few Tatebanko survive.
The oldest known surviving work is “Kanadehon Chushingura Ku-danme” (Nine acts of Kanadehon Chushingura). It was printed about 1760 AD.
An Iconic Japanese Legend
Kanadehon Chushingura (The Treasury of Loyal Retainers) is a play first written for puppets in 1748 but later adapted to Kabuki.
The play is based on a historical incident that occurred in 1701. It tells the story of a group of 47 loyal samurai who avenge their dead lord.
During an official state function, their feudal lord assaulted a court official. The shogun punished him by seizing his lands and forcing him to commit ritual suicide. He also dismissed the samurai.
They were prohibited from seeking revenge for their master. Even so, they swore a secret oath to avenge their dead lord.
Since they had no lord, the samurai could not earn a living. They became wanderers who did any work to survive.
The court official was suspicious of the samurai. So he had spies watch them closely. It took nearly two years before they were able to avenge their dead lord. After killing the official, they were forced to commit ritual suicide as punishment.
The story grew into a symbol of the loyalty, sacrifice, persistence, and honor that the Japanese people feel they should display in their daily lives.
Hokusai Creates Dioramas
One of the most famous artists to make the dioramas was Hokusai(October 31, 1760 AD – May 10, 1849 AD). He was a master of ukiyo-e woodblock printing.
Perhaps his most widely recognized woodblock print is The Great Wave off Kanagawa. It is part of the book Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji, published in the early 1830s.
The Boston Museum of Fine Arts has two of his Tatebanko kits in their collection.
A Famous Tokyo Landmark
The Kaminarimon Gate at Sensô-ji Temple in Asakusa is a single-page kit. The scene shows a crowd at the Kaminarimon.
Senso-ji is an ancient Buddhist temple located in the Asakusa district of Tokyo, Japan. The first temple was founded in 645 AD. Thus it is Tokyo’s oldest temple and one of its most significant.
Bombers destroyed the temple during a World War II air raid. The Japanese rebuilt it after the war. Today, it is a symbol of rebirth and peace to the Japanese people.
The Sanja Matsuri festival takes place on May’s third weekend to honor the three men who established and founded the temple. It is the largest Shinto festival held in Tokyo.
The Kaminarimom(Thunder Gate) is the outer of two entrance gates to the temple. Taira no Kimasa, a military commander, built the first gate in 941 AD.
It has been rebuilt many times since then.
Konosuke Matsushita, the founder of Panasonic, was the last to rebuild the gate in 1960 AD.
A Familiar Shinto Story
The Dance of the Gods at the Heavenly Cave is a two-page kit (Page 1, Page 2). This scene tells a Shinto story about a special event at Ama-no-Iwato(Heavenly Rock Cave).
The Japanese god of storms was misbehaving. His behavior embarrassed his sister, the goddess of the sun. To hide her shame, she sealed herself in the Heavenly Rock Cave.
The world was plunged into darkness.
All the other gods got together to figure out a way to return light to the world. The god of wisdom came up with a plan to lure her out of the cave.
The gods threw a party outside the cave. They made so much noise that the sun goddess grew curious. She unsealed the cave to see what was going on.
The gods told her they were celebrating because a god greater than her had come to be with them. She was very curious and wanted to see this god. So she peeked out of the cave.
The other gods quickly placed a mirror so she could catch a glimpse of her own reflection. Thinking it was the other god, she stepped out to get a better look.
At that time, the other gods grabbed her by the hands and pulled her out of the cave. They quickly sealed the cave so she could not hide again.
And so light was once again restored to the world.
Meiji Restoration Tatebanko
Modern Era Tatebanko
The internet and the computer printer seem to have been the savior of tatebanko. Today there is renewed interest in paper dioramas. They are widely available online.
You can learn more about them in these posts:
7 Famous Sites Of Japan – More Modern Tatebanko
7 Famous European Sites – Modern Tatebanko
8 Paper Diorama Aquariums To Ace Your School Project