Who was Hans de Winiwarter?
Hans de Winiwarter (1875-1949) was a professor of histology and embryology at the University of Liege, but also had a serious passion for art and literature. He was interested in collecting early modern Japanese books. He was proficient in Japanese, and translated excerpts from several books into French himself. The handwritten bibliographic index cards that Winiwarter added to each book in his collection bear witness to his erudition.
Auctions in London and Paris
Winiwarter assembled a valuable collection of more than 1,100 books during the first half of the 20th century, most of which have beautiful illustrations in colour or in black and white. The books were produced using woodblock printing, which enjoyed a golden period during the Edo era (1603-1868). They had a large readership among the affluent urban bourgeoisie in Japan, but also caught the eye of art lovers in the West. Winiwarter usually bought the works at auctions in London or Paris and managed to acquire several rare specimens.
From landscapes to Kabuki theatre
The works in Winiwarter’s collection cover a huge variety of subjects: landscapes, ranging from the imposing Mount Fuji to hills and rice fields, as well as scenes of daily life, fauna and flora, floral arrangements and tourist guides, for example to famous places in Edo (present-day Tokyo) or resting places along the Tokaido, the busiest main road of the day. The works feature folk tales depicting mythological heroes and deities, as well as historical scenes such as the turbulent Genpei War and the devastating Great Earthquake of Ansei.
The collection includes humorous and satirical novels, books of moral tales, educational textbooks and also books of poetry: in addition to the universally known haiku, waka (classical poems) and kyoka (literally: crazy verse) are also featured. The collection also includes beautiful women, eroticism and Kabuki theatre in the form of stage actor portraits and theatre texts. Together, the books offer a rich insight into Japanese society and book production of the 17th-19th centuries.
Books from all schools of painting
Winiwarter had an eye for both the substantive and artistic aspect, and strived to acquire books from almost all the painting schools of the Edo period. A host of prominent names from the art world pop up in his collection. The grandmasters Katsushika Hokusai and Utagawa Hiroshige are perhaps the most famous of them, but various other renowned illustrators including Utagawa Kunisada, Kitagawa Utamaro and Utagawa Kuniyoshi also make an appearance. The Hans de Winiwarter Fund therefore not only boasts aesthetic criteria, but is also historically, culturally and scientifically representative of Japanese printing from the 17th-19th centuries.
Hans de Winiwarter Fund
The KBR purchased the extensive collection of illustrated Japanese books in 1966. Since its acquisition, the collection has constituted a special fund in the KBR under the name “Hans de Winiwarter Fund” (KBR, FS XLI). The Fund was already briefly described in the 1960s and is now accessible in its entirety online.