150-Year-Old Japanese Book Shows U.S. History as an Epic Mythology

A Japanese book from the 1800s features an alternate depiction of United States history in which historical American figures are capable of superhuman feats.

Written by Kanagaki Robun and illustrated by Utagawa Yoshitora near the end of The Edo Period in 1861, Osanaetoki Bankokubanashi (“Children’s Illustrated Tales from 10,000 Countries”) provides an interesting look at how Japan viewed the Western world at the time, reports SoraNews24.

Now it’s the American Revolution. Here is George Washington defending his wife “Carol” from a British official named “Asura” (same characters as the Buddhist deity). 3/ pic.twitter.com/JXD6Cj0xOE

— Nick Kapur (@nick_kapur) November 14, 2018

The book, which was based on second-hand sources from Kaikoku Zushi (“Drawings of Foreign Countries”) and Amerika Ittōshi (“American Unified History”), was published some eight years after Commodore Perry forced Japan to end its 220-year-old policy of isolation in 1853.

Historian Nick Kapur recently posted some of the unintentionally hilarious illustrations from the book on his Twitter account.

And here is George Washington straight-up punching a tiger. 7/ pic.twitter.com/gM1BwRahEa

— Nick Kapur (@nick_kapur) November 14, 2018

George Washington, who is referred to in the book as “Father of the Country, Washington,” had his name spelled with the kanji for “story,” “holy,” and “east.” 

A thread of images from a Japanese illustrated history of America from 1861.

Here is George Washington (with bow and arrow) pictured alongside the Goddess of America. 1/ pic.twitter.com/LoF54y54bL

— Nick Kapur (@nick_kapur) November 14, 2018

The second U.S. President John Adams is shown below killing a gigantic serpent:

And here is Washington’s “second-in-command” John Adams battling an enormous snake. 4/ pic.twitter.com/ksEq9OW7g7

— Nick Kapur (@nick_kapur) November 14, 2018

Meanwhile, Benjamin Franklin is shown here being able to lift a cannon with his bare hands during an epic battle:

Here’s the incredibly jacked Benjamin Franklin firing a cannon that he holds in his bare hands, while John Adams directs him where to fire. 6/ pic.twitter.com/uiYFGFvTtQ

— Nick Kapur (@nick_kapur) November 14, 2018

A narrative from the book featured John Adam’s mother getting eaten by a snake:

But then! While John Adams is too obsessed with the food and drink, a huge snake comes along and *eats* his mom!

Maybe the snake was a child of that other snake John Adams killed, or maybe it was sent by Ben Franklin as part of their feud? 10/ pic.twitter.com/8xJvnktbQL

— Nick Kapur (@nick_kapur) November 14, 2018

Meanwhile, John Adams wants to get revenge on the snake that ate his Mom, so he goes to ask a magical mountain fairy for help! 12/ pic.twitter.com/UaxxN5BJPI

— Nick Kapur (@nick_kapur) November 14, 2018

The mountain fairy does Adams a solid, and summons a gigantic eagle! 13/ pic.twitter.com/Yqg4M3TlL8

— Nick Kapur (@nick_kapur) November 14, 2018

Together, John Adams and the eagle kill the enormous snake that ate his Mom. The power of teamwork!!! 14/ pic.twitter.com/Nf2tndEZvu

— Nick Kapur (@nick_kapur) November 14, 2018

When netizens asked why the Americans had such notable Asian facial features, Kapur explained that Japan was so isolated at the time that the illustrator simply had no idea what Westerners looked like.

Best buds John Adams and Ben Franklin must have had a falling out, because John Adams fires an arrow at Ben and then rides away like a cowardly little bitch. Of course Ben Franklin is a total badass, so he just stands there and lets the arrow fly by without even flinching. 8/ pic.twitter.com/w79i2Zy3De

— Nick Kapur (@nick_kapur) November 14, 2018

Kapur’s thread, which has generated thousands of likes and retweets, offers just a glimpse of the fascinating book. Those who want to check out the entire book can visit the Waseda University digital archives here.

The post 150-Year-Old Japanese Book Shows U.S. History as an Epic Mythology appeared first on NextShark.

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