[NEW JAPAN: A EUOLOGY CELEBRATING THE RISE OF THE JAPANESE EMPIRE BY A MUSLIM INTELLECTUAL] Musavver yeni Japonya: Japonya hakkinda malûmât-i mükemmeleyi hâvîdir [i.e., Pictorial new Japan]

ARIF, MEHMED.

Kitabhâne-yi Cihan Sahibi Mihrân / Sirket-i Mürettibiye Matbaasi, Istanbul, AH 1322 = [1904].

Modern burgundy cloth, original orange cover pasted on the front board, new pinkish endpapers. Cr. 8vo. (19,5 x 14 cm). In Ottoman script (Old Turkish with Arabic letters). 112 p., 19 unnumbered reproduced b/w photographic ills., one is double-paged. Small stains on three pages, overall, a very good copy.

A scarce first and only edition of a eulogy and praise book dedicated to modern Japan viewed through the eyes of a Muslim intellectual from the Ottoman Empire. Written just before the Russo-Japanese War (1904-1905), this work offers unique insights into Japanese modernization from an Ottoman perspective. Profusely illustrated, this book explores Japan's customs, society, morality, and modernization process in the 19th and early 20th centuries. It includes detailed tables with statistics on the Japanese army, particularly focusing on naval forces, along with information on the Japanese government's structure, postal services, railways, and more.

The book opens with an illustration of Mutsuhito (1852–1912), the 122nd Emperor of Japan, posthumously honored as Emperor Meiji. It also includes a eulogy celebrating the Empire's rise during his transformative reign.

ABOUT THE PUBLISHER:

Born in Kayseri, Mihran Efendi was the owner of the “Cihan Kitabhanesi”. He was of Armenian origin. After coming to Istanbul, he worked for the famous Armenian publisher Kasbar Efendi in Bâb-i Âli [i.e., The Sublime Port of Constantinople]. He founded “Cihan Bookshop” in 1885 and then the Cihan printing house in 1907. He started to publish a newspaper in 1908 with the same name as the printing house. He is one of the most important figures of early Ottoman / Turkish publishing history.

Özege 14497. As of September 2024, OCLC shows sole copy in the LOC, Karl Süssheim Collection, no. 359 (911619848).