Comments - In 1894, the publisher T. Hasegawa of Tokyo printed the book "The Gospel of Buddha" by Paul Carus for the Open Court Publishing Co. of Chicago. In an effort to introduce and popularize Buddhism to the West, Carus assembled a group of Buddhist texts, basing his format on the Christian New Testament. The book proved hugely popular, and was released in several different editions. This terrific woodblock printed by T. Hasegawa was used as an advertisement for the book. We have only seen this design once before, and it featured the title of the book and prices for cloth and paperback in English across the top of the page. This appears to be a blank version of the same print. The illustration depicts Buddha surrounded by monks and followers as two deities trailing flowing sashes fly across the sky among red, blue, and green clouds. Lotus blossoms and leaves border the bottom of the scene. A fascinating Meiji era subject and an interesting choice for a collector.

Artist - Meiji era artist (unsigned)

Image Size - 14 7/8" x 9 7/8" + margins as shown

Condition - This print with excellent color and detail as shown. Slight paper remnants on reverse at top edge from previous mounting. Slight toning. Please see photos for details. Nice overall.