Mutsu chidori [School of Birds of Basho’s Travels].
21 full-page woodcuts. 30; 29; 26; 23; 31 folding leaves. Five vols. 8vo, orig. wrappers (wrappers rather rubbed & frayed), new stitching. Kyoto: Izutsuya Shobei; Edo: Nishimura Uhei, 1697.
First edition of this collection of haikai written by several members of the circle surrounding Matsuo Basho (1644-94), Japan’s best-loved author. The poems were gathered by Taihakudo Torin (d. 1719), a friend and disciple of Basho (there is speculation that Torin was Basho’s nephew or younger brother). In 1696, to prepare for the third anniversary of Basho’s death, Torin retraced Basho’s famous 1689 journey through the main island of Japan, which... More