For centuries, Japanese artists have created block-printed illustrations and patterns that evoke their rich cultural heritage and deep appreciation of nature in art. Block printing has long been used as a relatively quick and inexpensive yet sophisticated method of adding images to paper and fabric. Block-print artists create individual prints of artworks or written texts, as well as covers and decorative endpapers for books and music scores. Block-print designs vary widely in subject matter, style, and coloration, depending on country and period of origin.
The four block prints reproduced in this boxed notecard assortment are part of the British Library’s Olga Hirsch Collection of Decorated Papers, which includes examples of marbled, embossed, block-printed, and paste papers from countries all around the world. Bequeathed in 1968, the collection comprises over 3,500 sheets of paper and around 130 books in paper wrappers or with decorated endpapers.
This set contains five each of the following four images:
Japanese Maple Leaves (18th century–20th century)
Hydrangeas and Butterflies (18th century–20th century)
Chrysanthemums (18th century–20th century)
Vines (18th century–20th century)
Contains twenty (5 each of 4 designs) notecards with envelopes in a decorative box.
Card Dimensions: 5 x 7 inches
Published with the British Library.
