1926 Sekai Isshū Kyōsō Sugoroku
DESCRIPTION
After centuries of limited contact with the outside world, this colorful 1926 pictorial map and sugaroku game presents a dramatically different outlook, encouraging a new generation of Japanese to look beyond their island nation and explore the wider world.
Published as a New Year supplement to the January 1926 issue of the popular Japanese magazine King (Kingu), the map was drawn by Saburō Ōta and issued by Dai Nippon Yūbenkai Kōdansha, now known as Kōdansha. Contemporary records identify it as the third supplement to King, Vol. 2, No. 1.
A Race Around the World
The game begins in Tokyo and sends players along a red route through Asia, Europe, Africa, North America, and the Pacific. Rather than attempting geographic accuracy, Ōta fills the continents with landmarks, animals, people, ships, and aircraft. The Great Wall crosses China, the pyramids and Sphinx mark Egypt, elephants populate Asia, penguins appear along the southern route, and steamships and airplanes connect distant parts of the world.
Europe is represented through national costumes and architecture, while Africa features palm trees, wild animals, and desert travelers. North America includes skyscrapers, cowboys, and Native American imagery. Many of these scenes rely on stereotypes, but they also make the map an interesting record of the visual shorthand through which distant cultures and places were presented to a Japanese mass audience.
Japan Looks Outward
The map appeared as Japan's connections with the wider world were rapidly expanding. International steamship travel was well established, commercial aviation was developing, and King, launched only the previous year, belonged to a growing mass-media culture bringing entertainment, current affairs, and information about foreign places into Japanese homes.
That perspective is especially evident in the map's geography. Tokyo is the starting point from which the world is explored, while ships, railways, and aircraft make distant places appear increasingly accessible. The result captures both Japan's growing international outlook and the excitement surrounding modern transportation during the interwar period. Games such as this, published for the New Year and enjoyed by children and families, also encouraged young Japanese players to imagine a world beyond their own islands, presenting international travel and distant countries as something they might one day experience for themselves.
Two Games on a Single Sheet
The reverse contains a completely different game, Katei Dai Undōkai Sugoroku (Great Family Athletic Meet Sugoroku), illustrated by Chōji Matoba. Players progress through running, jumping, gymnastics, ball games, and other athletic competitions before reaching the finish. Issued as another supplement to the same January issue of King, the second game emphasizes the sheet's original purpose: to be unfolded on a floor or table and enjoyed as family entertainment during the Japanese New Year holiday.
CONDITION
1200 W. 35th Street #425 Chicago, IL 60609 | P: (312) 496 - 3622