XXX Международный конгресс ИИСАА. 19–21 июня 2019 г. Т. 2

Источниковедение и историография Японии к 150-летию академика В. В. Бартольда (1869–1930). Ч. 2 127 Peijung Wu (National Central University, Taiwan) Western Understanding of the East-Asian Buddhist Art History in the Late 19 th Century: Focusing on the Cases of English Writings about Japanese temples This research focuses on the activities and writings of two Englishmen, Ernest Mason Satow (1843–1929) and WilliamAnderson (1842–1900), both active in the late Nineteenth century Japan. However, the purpose of this paper is not only to clarify their personal experiences, but also to consider how their writings reflect the early development of the East-Asian art historiography, especially that of the Buddhist art. Satow, an English diplomat who lived in Japan for more than twenty years, was among the earliest Westerners travelled widely in Japan. His book, A Handbook for Travellers in Central and Northern Japan , first published in 1881 and revised in 1884, was considered the best source for understanding Japanese history and culture at his time. In this handbook, Satow provided detailed information about many ancient temples, some of which dated to the seventh or the eighth century, in the Osaka, Kyoto and Nara areas. He also left a diary, in which we find entries in 1879 relevant to these ancient temples, such as Hōryūji, Yakushiji, Tōdaiji, and Kōfukuji. Anderson, a surgeon employed in the Japanese naval hospital, lived in Japan for more than six years and became very interested in Japanese art. He travelled with Satow in 1879 and wrote some chapters for A Handbook for Travellers in Central and Northern Japan. Anderson’s own book, The Pictorial Arts of Japan , published in 1886, is important for including materials from the ancient temples mentioned above. The fact that both Satow’s and Anderson’s books were published in the 1880’s is especially remarkable. Their activities are earlier than most of the other Western scholars who studied the East-Asian art history. Also noteworthy is their serious interest in the early Buddhist art works. It is well known that Ukiyo-e prints were highly welcomed in the West from the second half of the Nineteenth century, but during the “Japonism” boom not many Westerners considered Japanese works, or any East-Asian art works, as important as the masterpieces from theWesternWorld. It is of interest for us to consider when and how the Western interest in Japanese prints and curiosities transformed into more serious pursuit for art works. Hence, a research on the early writings about the Buddhist temples and their art works would reveal important information. Many paintings, sculptures, and architecture recorded in Satow’s andAnderson’s books proved to be extremely significant today. Some of them are assigned as the World Cultural Heritage, and some of them are official “National Treasure”. In this paper, I am not only discussing what Satow and Anderson recorded, but also how they approached these works, i.e. the methodology they applied, including whether they consulted Japanese sources while compiling their books.