1806 Shihei / Kitsuan Woodblock Map of Korea

This is a rare Tamiya Kitsuan / Hayashi Shihei xylographic or woodblock map of Korea, with accompanying tables, and a history of Korea, dating to 1806. The map is a stand-alone piece, divorced from Shihei's earlier work, and covers all of Korea as well as the adjacent islands, including the disputed Dokdo and a vastly oversized Ulleungdo. Jeju is not present. Cartographically the map is derived from the work Hayashi Shihei (林子平), but has here been revised with additional historical information on Korea and tables comparing Korea, China, and Japan, compiled by Tamiya Kitsuan (田宮橘菴).

Shihei Source Map

As noted, the map is derived from the work of Hayashi Shihei, who published the map to illustrate his 1785 Sangoku Tsūran Zusetsu (Illustrated General Survey of the Three Countries). It covers all of Korea as well as the adjacent islands. Shihei's book advocated gathering intelligence about foreign lands for defense of Japan. Immediately upon publication, the Sangoku Tsūran Zusetsu (三国通覧図説, An Illustrated Description of Three Countries) raised the ire of the Tokugawa, whose believed the work ran contrary to the Sakoku (鎖国) or 'closed country' isolationist policy. Almost all of the original xylographic versions of Sangoku Tsūran Zusetsu were aggressively collected and destroyed. Nonetheless, copies of Shihei's book, including his maps, were hastily copied out by hand and passed clandestinely from scholar to scholar. Consequently, most surviving examples of Shihei's work are manuscript, or 'hand drawn'. In contrast to western maps, where manuscripts are valued more highly than printed maps, in this case it is the woodblock printings that are most desirable.

The Present Map

There is a great deal of mystery surrounding this piece - why it was made? how it was made? The map appears to be a stand-alone publication attributed to Tamiya Kitsuan (田宮橘菴), unrelated to the earlier Shihei book. It was published in Osaka (浪華書肆 / Naniwa Bookstore) some 20 years after Shihei drew the original map. All known examples in institutional collections are, like the present map, attached to a separate sheet continuing a history of Korea, incorporating Japanese transliterations of Korean placenames, and tables comparing the Korean monarchy with the empires of China and Japan. We can only assume, as this publication fell well within the Sakoku (鎖国) period, that it too would have been suppressed, but there is no available scholarship on this subject. It is also unclear if the publisher, the Naniwa Bookstore (浪華書肆), had Shihei's original 1785 xylographic block, or if he re-carved it from a manuscript copy.

Publication History and Census

This map was published in Osaka in Bunka 3, or 1806, by Tasuke Morimoto (森本太助) and Matsinosuke Nakagawa (中川松之助) of the Naniwa Bookstore (浪華書肆). It is attributed to Tamiya Kitsuan (田宮橘菴) and based upon the c. 1785 cartographic work of Hayashi Shihei (林子平). We have identified examples at Yokohama City University, Waseda University, and the National Diet Library, 132-179. We are aware of one further example in private hands. Rare.

Korean Description

1806년 일본 田仲宣이 교정을 하고, 長田愚矦가 보완하였으며, 森本太助와 中川松之가 판각하여 제작한 于山國이 조선의 영토로 표기된 목판 채색 지도 [朝鮮世表 幷 全圖] 1점(原 케이스 포함)17세기 제작 지도를 모본으로 하여 1806년 田仲宣이 교정을 하고, 長田愚矦가 보완하였으며, 森本太助와 中川松之가 판각하여 앞면에는 于山島가 조선의 영토로 표기되어 있는 朝鮮全圖와 뒷면에는 조선 관련 내용이 수록된 朝鮮世表으로 구성된 목판 채색 지도 [朝鮮世表 幷 全圖] 1점이다.앞면의 <朝鮮全圖>는 조선의 팔도를 노란색으로 그렸으며, 군현은 주황색과 빨간색으로 그렸다. 또한, 한반도의 ‘동남북’을 서투른 한글로 ‘동’, ‘담’, ‘븍’으로 표기하였으며, 勃海國을 잘못된 위치에 표기하고 있다.특히 鬱陵島를 아주 크게 그리고 있으며, 于山國을 千山國으로 잘못 표기하여 울릉도와 한 섬으로 그린 점이 특징적이다.<朝鮮世表>에는 고려와 조선의 왕계표와 일본의 왕계표, 중국의 왕계표를 비교하여 수록하고 있으며, 조선의 통신사가 일본을 방문했을 시 東國通鑑, 東醫寶鑑 등을 가져왔다는 내용, 1763년 11대 조선의 통신사까지 역대 통신사에 대해 상세히 수록하고 있다.특히 왕계표의 조선 부분에서는 명종까지만 표기하고 있으며, 서투르지만 일본의 가타카나를 한국어 발음으로 표기한 점, 조선의 역대 통신사의 방문 일자와 정사, 부사, 종사의 이름을 모두 수록하고 있는 점이 특징적이다.통신사의 경우 1763년 11대 통신사까지의 내용이 수록되어 있으나, 11대 통신사인 趙曮, 李仁培, 金相翊의 이름은 지워져 있다.