Beschreibung:

Europe. Kisaborō Ohara. A Humorous Diplomatic Atlas of Europe and Asia, circa 1904, lithographic satirical 'Octopus map' with contemporary hand colouring, descriptive text in Japanese and English, some creasing and staining, torn with loss to upper margin (but not affecting printed image), laid on near contemporary hessian, 420 x 575 mm (Qty: 1) The map was created at the outbreak of the Russo-Japanese War (1904 - 1905), very much in the style of Fred Rose's Serio-Comic War Map, 1877. Rose's map established the conceit of depicting Russia's aggressive expansionism in the form of a Kraken-like 'Black Octopus.' Rose concentrated on Europe but Ohara has expanded the map to include Asia and the far east. The map is clearly intended for the British market as much as the Japanese, possibly as a warning to the British navy to stay out of the conflict. The Russians and Japanese were struggling for control of Port Arthur which would be surrendered to the Japanese who defeated the Russian Fleet in December of 1905, several months after this map was printed. Ohara sums up the situation in his English language descriptions of the map, printed in the upper left: "Black Octopus is a name newly given to Russia by a certain prominent Englishman. For the black octopus is so avaricious, that he stretches out his eight arms in all directions, and seizes up every thing that comes within his reach. But as it sometimes happens he gets wounded seriously even by a small fish, owing to his too much covetousness. Indeed, a Japanese proverb says: 'Great avarice is like unselfishness.' We Japanese need not to say much on the cause of the present war. Suffice it to say that the further existence of the Black Octopus will depend entirely upon how he comes out of this war. The Japanese fleet has already practically annihilated Russia's naval powers in the Orient. The Japanese army is about to win a signal victory over Russia in Corea and Manchuria. And when ... St. Petersburg? Wait & see! The ugly Black Octopus! Hurrah! Hurrah! for Japan." A highly jingoistic but visually very effective piece of Japanese propaganda, perhaps indicative of Japan's expansive territorial ambitions as much as the Russians. The map is rare, with OCLC locating only four institutional holdings