Dining room, Miyako Hotel, Kyoto, c. 1930. “The Miyako Hotel is favourably known to most distinguished travellers throughout the world. It is situated in the healthiest, prettiest, and most convenient part of Kyoto for sight-seeing and shopping.”

Second Kyoto Railroad Terminal, c. 1950, a shin-hanga reproduction attributed to Tokuriki Tomikichiro. The reverse of this postcard is captioned “Kyoto Station, completion of construction [in 1914].”

Yebisu Beer, Tokio Brewery No. 1, Meguro, Tokio, c. 1900.

Hot sand bathers, Beppu, c. 1930.

The Rosetta Hotel, berthed on Tokyo Bay near the Hama Detached Palace at Shibaura, c. 1910

Hitachi color TV console advertising postcard, c. 1970. Back caption: “Japan’s beloved Momotaro (the boy born from a peach) and his animal friends with a Hitachi television set.”

“Gekimetsu” (“Annihilation”) motion picture advertising postcard, 1930. Gekimetsu was a motion picture recreation of the Battle of Tsushima produced in 1930 by Nikkatsu Studios, scripted by the I.J.N.’s official historian, Admiral Ogasawara Naganari, and directed by Ogasawara’s son, Meiho.

“In commemoration of the Establishment of Direct Cable Communication between Japan and America” commemorative postcard, August 1, 1906.

“Admiral Togo and his flag-ship ‘Mikasa‘,” c. 1910, constructed at Vickers shipyard in Barrow-in-Furness, UK, in 1898.

On this date in 1954, Japan Air Lines inaugurated its Pacific Service. “City of Tokyo” DC-6B (JAL), seen here, christened JAL's first trans-Pacific route, flying Tokyo-San Francisco via Wake Island and Honolulu. The "City of Tokyo" is seen here on a ca. 1955 postcard loading passengers at Honolulu.

Limited express “Uzushio” promotional postcard, 1961. Inset lower-left displays the Osaka-Uno route, offering a convenient travel time of 2 hours and 50 minutes to Uno and 4 hours and 10 minutes to Takamatsu (in Shikoku).

Shirokiya department store, c. 1910, after completion of its Westernized storefront in 1903.

“Snow scene, Custom House of Yokohama,” c. 1910, on the Yokohama Bund. Custom House was the official port entry for passengers arriving by ship, and was also where all cargo entering Japan at Yokohama was cleared.

Shiga Housing Complex (danchi) postcard set, Nagoya, c. 1960. The ‘DK’, a combination of dining room and kitchen, which appeared after the Second World War, decisively changed the Japanese house. A Tokyo University research group developed the first dining-kitchen for public housing in 1951.

Futaba-kai School, Tokyo, c. 1910, after the relocation and completion in 1910 of its new campus near the Imperial Palace at Kojimachi in Tokyo.

“Air raid by airship.” Army Air Defense Drill, c. 1930. www.oldtokyo.com/army-air-def... "Organization for civil defense in Japan was marked by a confusing overlapping of jurisdiction, and provided situations where an individual might be a member of several civil defense organizations at once.

The ryokan “Himeno Hotel”, Beppu, c. 1930. As early as the Edo Period (1603-1868), the area boasted eight hot springs and by the end of that period ryokan had already been established along the main highway.

“Master Takayama worshipping in the snow”, Kora Taisha Shrine (“National Shrine of the Gods”), Kurume, Fukuoka Prefecture, c. 1920.

Ikaya Ryokan, Naoetsu, Niigata Prefecture, c. 1910. Ikaya ryokan first opened in 1872 twenty-five years before Naoetsu became the terminus of the Shin-etsu Line to Nagano.

“Budō-Seru” (Grape-Cell) silk fabric advertising postcard, c. 1930. “Each roll of this fabric bears the ‘Insect-Proof Grape-Cell’ mark at every yard along the edge.”

A game of Uta-garuta, c. 1930, a popular pastime at machiya [tea house]. The game is played by the general public mostly around the New Year holiday, and consists of a two sets each of 100 cards, with a waka poem written on each.

“Year of the Horse”, New Years postcard, 1906, an auspicious year for the zodiac sign because 1906 was only one of two “Fire Horse” (Hinoeuma) years to occur in the 20th century. The year 2026 will be the first “Fire Horse” year of the 21st century.

“Christmas Greetings from the Naces”, c. 1930. The five Nace children (left to right): Theodore, Margaret, Rebecca, George and Robert.

“Following Japan’s victories in the Sino-Japanese and Russo-Japanese wars, one of the most significant changes occurred with the building of sumo’s first permanent stadium in 1909.

Imperial Japanese Navy Shanghai Naval Landing Force (SNLF) marines “at work completing the wire barricade”, The Shanghai Trouble postcard series, 1932.

“Gyokushodo” incense store advertising postcard, Shitaya, Tokyo, c. 1920. Gyokushodo dates its founding to 1804 in Osaka. The company has been influential in the blending and production of Japanese incense for over 200 years.

Completion of the Chuo Main Line Railway commemorative postcard, Nagoya, c. 1911, with an inset photo of Goto Shimpei, then then-Director of Japan Government Railways. The Kobu Railway opened the initial section of the Chūō Line from Shinjuku Station to Tachikawa Station in 1889.

“Ski”-brand Woolen Yarn advertising postcard, c. 1930, published by the Ministry of Industry and Commerce. The red tag attached to the left yarn bundle reads “Easy to knit. Does not fray.”

Hibiya Public Hall, c. 1935. The building once housed the Domei Tsushin state wire service and its postwar successors, Kyodo News and Jiji Press.

“Main street of Karuizawa”, c. 1920. The former Nakasendo post station had fallen into decline after the Restoration until being “discovered” in the late 19th century by Westerners as a retreat from the summer heat and humidity of the coastal lowlands.

Miyanoshita Village, Hakone, c. 1910. In distance (at center) can be seen the famed Miyanoshita Fuijya Hotel.

Murasugi Radium Hot Springs advertising postcard, Niigata, c. 1920, published by the Araki Shichinojo Inn, showing the nearest train stations (Niitsu and Mizuhara) and other means of area transportation including bus and automobile. The Murasugi radium hot springs are said to be over 700 years old.

“Gatekeeper of Kenko-kan”, c. 1920. A young adherent of the Shisa-ba jyunbutsu [‘lion dog’ school] of kenbu.

The Kawakami Theater’s principal players were Kawakami Otojiro, a raconteur, actor and comedian (and for whom the troupe was named), and his wife, Sadayakko ...

Main Gate, Sea and Sky Exposition, Ueno Park, Tokyo, 1930, with faux aircraft cowlings and battleship turrets in 3-D relief decorating the gate.

Sumo wrestler Hitachiyama, c. 1910, a yokozuna [grand champion] from 1903-1914 who did much to popularize sumo into becoming the national sport during the Meiji and Taisho eras.

Crowds packing Theater Street (Rokku), Asakusa, Tokyo, c. 1930. “Old postcards reveal that in Tokyo’s Asakusa amusement district the already exuberant and fanciful fonts were subjected to the same banner-strewn treatment that might obscure a modest machiya veil at festival time.

Comparing the ABV levels of various alcoholic beverages, c. 1920, including beer, sake, brandy and whisky. Caption: “The use of alcohol as a stimulant or foodstuff in medicine has no scientific value, and therefore efforts should be made to eliminate it.”

The Japan Society for the Preservation of Historic Sites, Places of Scenic Beauty, and Natural Monuments, Tokyo, an advocacy group founded by Marquis Tokugawa Yorimichi in 1911, assembling here for a tour of historical sites in Tokyo.

“Mr. H. E. Manwaring, the very capable boniface, who presides over the destinies of the Grand Hotel at Yokohama, is one of the men whose name is known to travelers all over the world. ‘Manwaring? Oh, yes! You mean Manwaring of the Grand, Yokohama, of course!’

The first streetcars, referred to as a ‘horse trolleys without the horse’ (uma no nai basha), could hold up to forty people, sixteen seated and the rest standing.

“Breaking through Yanmen Pass – the army moves in broad daylight.” I.J.A. propaganda postcard, Yànménguān (Yanmen) Pass, Shanxi Province, China, 1937, one of the steepest grades along the Great Wall of China and historically considered one of the Wall’s most important passes.

Fukoku Fire & Marine Insurance Co., Ltd. advertising postcard, Tokyo, c. 1930, had its beginnings in 1897 as the Otaru Cargo Insurance Co. Expanding beyond its cargo insurance limitations, the company received approval in 1919 to solicit general commercial insurance coverage concerns.

“Wreck of the S.S. Dakota“, 1907. The American-owned passenger liner ran aground a reef near the entrance to Tokyo Bay. The accident happened close enough to shore to avoid any deaths; passengers and cargo were evacuated before she sank.

“Princess Turandot” [トゥーランドット姫], Takarazuka Revue advertising postcard, Tokyo, 1934. The image features the musical’s two stars – Kusabe Yoshiko (left, as Princess Turandot) and Nara Miyako (Prince Calaf) – bracketed at the bottom by a production patron’s advertisement for Club toothpaste.

“Domestic and International Communications Network of Correspondents” advertising postcard, Tokyo Nichi Nichi Shimbun, Tokyo, c. 1940.

“Boy Scouts practising the motto ‘A good turn daily'”, c. 1920. The Japanese caption (一日一善ノ實行) translates to ‘doing one good deed each day’.(Colorized)

“Mr. M. Oshiro, the proprietor of the Oshiro Steamship Co., Tokyo, and some other business men, intend to purchase the Rosetta Maru and to convert her to a floating hotel. The ship will be anchored in Yokohama and sometimes in Shinagawa.” – The Japan Weekly Mail, January 26, 1907

“Festive lighting of the 2nd Section”, Peace Commemorative Exposition, Ueno Park, Tokyo, 1922, with the Peace Tower at center.

50th Anniversary commemorative postcard, Nankai Railway Co., Osaka, 1934. The privately-owned and operated Nankai Electric Railway Co., Ltd. was founded on June 16, 1884 as the Osaka-Sakaikan Railway, the first railway company in Japan to be established purely by private capital.