Welcome ...

zen and the art of the koban ...  or, zeitgeist and the gestalt view.
posts here reflect research into art history, the history of print and my personal studies of imitations and foreign mail kobans.










japanese kobans 1876-92   -  the first bilingual  issues of the "Imperial Japanese Post" .

Edoardo Chiossone of Italy designed most, but not all the issues... I hope you enjoy reading various topics presented over time ... thanks for visiting . a member of ISJP.ORG since 1969 ... have assisted the "forgery project" from 1995 ... my outlook reflected in posts offers a new rationalization of koban imitations ... you may post your comments : but please stay on topic ...

chiossone taught at Technical Art School in Tokio - 1876-1881. closed 1883. ... I have often pondered if some of the students produced the facsimiles ... 130 woodblock artists were active - 1860-1875 ; however,  modern artviews were developing in japan and elsewhere ... as well, competition for newer printing technologies :  relief printing was infringing on traditional woodblock and serigraphy.


can anyone provide Maeda Kihei's  K series sets as scans ?  please contact me ...

if chrome browser is installed, auto translate available... very fine feature. picasa3 is also excellent and free download from google.   also note StampCat v10 just released ...

M2 50sen CCCC ...

the 50sen shows cuts to perfs on all sides

an M2 (maeda) imitation...

old kobans were first offered as sets on the K-series tourist sheets

a few survive as obliterated singles

expanded facsimile range ...

my inspections of kobans has revealed new forms in FM or bota cancels ...   I have discovered some Osaka and Yokohama negative cross items on 10sen values.    the 3sen value may also produce some new bota finds ...   my notes on this blog seem to stimulate other collectors to review their holdings... result, more new finds are appearing ...

as a result of my notes, several collectors have also uncovered new nijumaru forms for 1sen and 2sen, not covered as plates in ISJP 2002 CD.

genuine on left, with example of this new group on right ...  note all sides are cut perfs ; the lack of details and frame anomolies ...

anyone puzzling over kobans  ?  send me scans - and I will offer an opinion.

this will assist my plating studies.

new koban imitations ...

fig 1 : genuine vs imitations

fig 2 : MK4 new kobans

• the 2sen bears both a maruichi and denshin cancel.  note the frame error, sen value...
• the 15sen and 50sen : both have common frames, and numeral anomolies.  the kanji is also irregular, and shade vars...

please send scans of any further finds in New or UPU koban imitations...

2012 : work-in-progress ...

Build 2012.3 - NIJUMARU STUDY - TOURIST SHEET KOBAN IMITATIONS

the nijumaru section will follow after bota study is complete.   this is a large study that will take months to analyse.  radials must be isolated, coded and class grouped...

radial types : #2 and 3 are most common

the MDB shows denshin, kiban, nijumaru and maruichi forms.   hybrids and combos exist also.

multi-strikes (1...4) on same object.

Build 2012.3 - ROMAN LETTER YEAR DATE KOBAN IMITATIONS

this should be available soon after the nijumaru study is complete

Build 2012.3 - MIHON SUMITEN AND SPECIMEN KOBAN IMITATIONS

these appeared in the forgery enkakushi, or tourist sheets.   preliminary study in progress.

progress report ... MXC constructs.

the library of grouped indicia or cancel slugs is advancing moderately... my active study beyond the spiro sheets , includes two basic groups: bota and nijumaru, or double circle. bota subgroups : the foreign seapost , and letter cancels. these will be classified according to the latest cancel monograph of the JPS 2008 ed. ... this will allow collectors to separate the woodblock reproduction series from the genuine kobans.
nijumaru subgroups : the partial cancels (90 or 180 degree) ; inter-value correlation analysis; ... and the free-form double circles ... creating a new series of plated imitations 

a time-series approach ... correlation of genuine and repro kobans

as time passes, more is known about the relationships between the artists, sources of the reproductions and their distribution globally... woodblock method is not unique to Edo period artists of japan, but continues today ... Varro Tyler, remarked that several european artists used this method, for reproducing many nations postal objects ... the japanese case, reflects none were "postal forgeries" during the classic period* ... further, various koban repros followed only after the genuine stamps were withdrawn from use (postal rate changes) ... in fact, this time-delay is signifigant ... Maeda Kihei emulated many genuine obliterators, nijumaru, denshin and even some maruichi cancel forms in his work ... botas reflecting both foreign mail and city letter-cancels also exist... (some are also "imaginative" or indicate "mozo" only)... note that Wada Katoro's son was president of the first philatelic club in japan ... the repro catalogs of this era are scarce ... so a goal was to recreate aspects of japanese philately, where none remained in japan proper or abroad ... foreign seamail postmarks as an example ... this is the function of copyists (graphic artists) : whether philatelic objects or other works of art ...


the work achieved by the ISJP.ORG and JPS members to date**; however, still leaves some "dead-ends" : or unanswered questions ... further, the original numbering of plates was achieved by K Wilhelmsen of Norway ... and the ISJP subsequently, reviewed the plates in the monograph - Kobans Forgeries of Japan : coauthored by Varro Tyler and Kristian Wilhelmsen.... the 2002 V2 CD on forgeries, follows this pattern today ...


in order to sequence koban reproductions more closely, correlation of each repro-object to dates revealed in Monograph 17, and to JSCA koban tables : date of emission, date of withdrawal of each denomination... repro obliterator or cancel form dates will be referenced to 2008 JPS monograph on cancels ....each object, where possible is also cross-referenced to the isjp CD itself .... the cancel or obliterator, where it mimics the genuine should reflect a closer "time-series" of production for many of the koban repros... I am developing these MXCs or cancel matrices overtime ....currently, the ISJP CD divides these as either "litho" or "typo" (engraved) plates as the original survey by Wilhelmsen ... my view is that all are woodblock design ...

* the enkakushi by wada, was a different case ... the IJPO seized most copies, as included were some genuine postal stationery items .... this was omitted from Casey's recent monograph on the tourist sheets. a definitive reference outling sources of classic reproductions ...


** 2008 JPS monograph on cancels , reflects this collaboration

Bota cancel study of imitations ....

Build 2011.12  - BOTA STUDY - TOURIST SHEET KOBAN IMITATIONS
the bota study of FM and Letter cancels has been complied and updated....  these are class grouped on album pages ... plating associations will follow

... progress report :  distributions are growing - isolation of radials follows - then plating...

JPS 2008 cancel guide ... section 322

bryan's 58 killers ...

the IJPO joined the UPU in 1875, in hope of solving common problems of international mail seapost.  at the beginning of meiji era, several nations were active in japan mails - britain, france, usa, russia and germany... mails to other european destinations were carried by packet lines of these nations.  the growth of railway lines internationally also speeded the mails overland.

to 1876, the IJPO domestically were using woodcarved indicia... duplex to cancel outbound, and nijumaru receiving marks.  with the start of japan's foreign mail service, things changed.  the usa sold the pacific steamship company to mitsubishi steamship - the shanghai route was growing fast.   this streamlined the US service to n america and europe.   the british maintained a seapost route (twice daily) to hong kong and beyond.   the french service also continued until 1900s...

roman letter daters and new obliterators appeared in 1875.  the first set of killers were iron cast and manufactured by a NYC firm.  Bryan brought these IJPO foreign mail office, where he acted as advisor.  these appear below... historically these are important.  compare each to designs in section 322 of the 2008 JPS handbook of japanese postmarks.  the images below show original state.  overtime, some degraded to only partial cancels.  regarding the early roman letter thimbles, Bryan may have contracted these for IJPO also.  I have yet to discover the source, however, they resemble more the british hong kong cancels of the time (perhaps a london firm manufactured them).  ref: JP48-5

in 1875, tokio, yokohama, nagasaki, hiogo-kobe and hakodate were part of foreign mail service.  by 1900, 44 japan offices had rubber-molded roman-letter daters.  the JPA and IJPO offices in china and korea also moved to roman-letter daters as  UPU requirement.  the domestic letter botas continued to be made of wood - lasting about 6 months...

FM Bryans # 18 ...

this FM bota should be added to the JPS 2008 handbook ...

it is unknown which PO was assigned the obliterator, possibly Tokio

first occurence noted.

JPS 2008 cancel guide ...

having worked with this guide for some weeks, I recommend it ....

the foreign mail section has been audited , bringing forward new indicia from the Nishino study ... for telegraph enthusiasts, this section has been expanded greatly ... the small double-circle cancels are a fine way to represent kobans ...

this is not a price guide : but aids research. I relate my koban imitation study constantly ... defining the imitation indicia.  the graphs show section 322 : foreign mail - by PO and year ...

3sen plate anomoly ...

parallex : skewed features due to lack of of orthogonality...   renichi yamada notes in his 2009 monograph - this 3sen occurence -  UR corner left.

certain positions are misaligned on the 400u 3sen rose plate.   so relative to perforation, they are askew, or offset right.

as this plate derived from the 100u old koban 3sen plate,  similar anomolies are likely.   further, as the M4 imitation frames derived from same plate - even they should exhibit this askewed nature.

like history, errors repeat ...   in photography, parallex shows rectangles as rhomboids - if the lense is not orthogonally centred ...  horizon scales are important.   today, so many stamps at auction are shot at angles that produce poor images.

maeda's composite plates ... batz method

fig 1 - enlarged detail of 10sen genuine frame - note the design merges with value.

fig 2 - maeda K series M2-10sen : 2 shades .   note the frame design.

corner shadow boxes are evident.

the Batz method was innovation in denmark to produce "bi-color" issue and also influenced the norge posthorn production ...  basic design elements frame and design were isolated on 1 plate; and value and text layered on a second plate ...   work saving method.

unknowingly,  maeda used similar approach with block/screen transfer ...  see fig 3 below  - merge lines on M3-osaka.    

what is signifigant also - this places the 10sen in bota group of imitations .   the isjp 2002 CD only records
nijumaru types.

remarks on kobans ...

10sen /w KxE bota and 2 red marks ?

rev 50sen red /w fold and signature

can anyone provide more information ?

1sen new koban imitations ...

fig 1

fig 2

fig 1 shows 2 new types ...top row - the 1sen yellow-green var lack the ring that normally surrounds the kiku crest.  also frame and numeral anomolies.  the 1sen dark green exhibit fake mihon /w katakana.

I have compared both to the Maeda NK design in fig 2 and they are different; so source is unknown. can anyone provide more information ?   

determining if false ... (faux)

1. 50x scope will reveal jagged edges of genuine designs.
2. imitations show irregularities in the frame lines. (askew)... using metrics software I have discovered V/H variances between positions ... i.e. no standard size exist as die-cut letterpress.
3. compare image to that of genuine example ... and look for sanko marks ...
4. TC : torn or cut perforations :  no booklets were issued; imitations often show cuts to perfs.
5. negative image :  the genuine inks are more transparent, than imitations (opaque) ...  look for extraneous dots from tooling or air bubbles in ink on imitations

1871 announcement ....

mayeda in canada ...

Harold Mayeda was secretary of the forerunner club, later chartered as ISJP.org.
working with Capt Talbot, as japanese translator, their goal was to produce a manual for the japanese imitations that collectors cherish ....

the first compendium was Kristian Wilhelmsen 's work of 1980.*  Varro Tyler of the ISJP then collaborated with a monograph on the koban imitations.  in 1992, I urged the ISJP to edit and review the imitations in a new colour study.   the first edition ISJP CD was released in 1995 - 50 years later.   an appended V2, followed in 2002.
* the b/w photography is excellent, and I still refer to this study.

collage technique ... adverts

the image is a serigraph of the main Tokio post office ...  the image was reproduced several times on adverts.

... a collage technique was used to add the imitations 1yen green .   trappist monks in France, were also teaching printing ...

2011-12 JPS specialised catalog ...

hoping to find a review soon ...

the specialised catalog of japan, is now in 3 parts ...
various study groups and teams rigorously edit the sections and add new information ...
hopefully, in the years ahead a logicel or online edition will follow ...

google/translate is a great tool for exploring japanese language sites, blogs and auction ...

stanley gibbons in yokohama ... c1900

stanley gibbons sold his stamp business and became a world traveller.  visiting japan
he remarked the scarcity of stamp boutiques.   however, it is unclear whether he reached Tokio and beyond ...   as issues were withdrawn, the IJPO sold the remainder sheets to dealers in japan, and abroad - usually at 25% face value.

his first encounter was no doubt with Takahashi ...

1893 correspondence

the london press ... 1900

early catalogers of stamps were fournier in france, and maeda and wada in japan.   the facsimile makers were all "cast from the temple of philately"  by various society leaders.   and a deluge of reports followed :  "the spud papers"  ...  as shown, the main competition that maeda and wada faced, was the I.J.P.O. releasing remainder sheets.  so who had the lower cost of production ?

london CV 1900

note the evaluation reflects currency exchange, rather than scarcity value.   the 50sen costs more than a 45sen.   further,  here are 1876 press release kobans ...  see left - both are facsimiles ( maeda)

Yamazaki ...

Kanazawa , capital of Ishikawa prefecture, was built on the site of the old village of Yamazaki - seat of the Maeda clan (16th-19th cent.)   note the long pilgrimage to tokio ...

Maeda Kihei's new koban series ...

Maeda's affiliation with the Wada works is well documented ...  his sets appear unused on his editions of K-series tourist sheets.   what is shown above are 1883 new kobans.   to date, no K sheet offers this set.  however, I discovered the set as underprints, on Wada D11 tourist sheet.   the D12 sheet also bears the underprints.   though printed on sheet, genuine new kobans were applied overtop.    with evidence todate, the new kobans remain "unissued" or in the plethora of booklets that followed.

(the glue spots could not be removed without damaging the paper.  I will send a larger image to anyone by email)   please note the 5sen plate error ... "5-on-10" ...  many imitations are shadow cast values, or text...
here a double impression example ... 50sen

classification of imitations ...

this is how I view the different koban imitations ...  based on long-term observation.  I have modified my overview several times over 40 years ...

my theory of plate size is shown in the above table ...  I assume a maximum plate units of 25 for all tourist sheet plates.   indicia plates are known, 2x3 or 2x4 .  regardless,  the MXV can be greater.

I project changing transfer methods, and source for value plates : woodcut vs genuine.  the MXC is always separate block or screens.   the MXV is frame plate, with redrawn value text or kanji.    serigraph predominates  throughout.  the innovation was photographic scaling of plates in manufacture - simply "photogravure"

lithography in meiji japan ... via san francisco

1874-1884  Ottoman Smolik, czech born national,  was recruited by Uchida with Pollard to teach lithography method in japan.   book publishing was expanding, and classic woodblock method was reserved for artworks.
chromolithography was also an expensive and labour-intensive process.

Smolik in 1877 offered  "suname" - relief half-tone method . the halftone-method was pioneered in Montreal by Desbarats and applied to newsprinting.   allowing haltone photography, beside text.

unknown if he touched on kobans imitations ??

relief printing ...

art and technology :  printing methodology 

Chiossone 1875-1891  " galvanoplastic "  relief -  electro-membrane method of reproducing plates (Ichida)
the plate making is described in the JSCA catalog and the monographs of JPS.   80, 100 and 400 matrix plates .  the method was used by Batz of Denmark, before koban era ...

A relief print is an image created by a printmaking process, such as woodcut, where the areas of the matrix
(plate or block) that are to show printed black (typically) are on the original surface; the parts of the matrix that
are to be blank (white) having been cut away, or otherwise removed. Printing the image is therefore a relatively
simple matter of inking the face of the matrix and bringing it in firm contact with the paper; a printing-press may
not be needed as the back of the paper can be rubbed or pressed by hand with a simple tool.


This contrasts with an intaglio print, such as an engraving or etching (although there can also be relief etching),
where the areas to print black are below the original surface of the matrix, and the original surface of the matrix
will print blank. To print these the whole matrix is inked, and the ink then wiped away from the surface, so that it
remains only in the lines (classically) that the artist has made below the surface of the matrix. Much greater
pressure is then needed to force the paper into the channels containing the ink, and a high-pressure press will
normally be required.


The relief family of techniques includes woodcut, wood engraving, relief etching, linocut, and some types
of collography. Traditional text printing with movable type is also a relief technique, which meant that woodcuts
were much easier to use as book illustrations, as they could be printed together with the text, whilst intaglio
prints such as engravings had to be printed separately.


The other traditional families of techniques are:
• intaglio , including engraving, etching and drypoint,
• planographic , including techniques such as lithography; here all the original surface of the matrix
remains, but the image is created by treating some areas of the surface,
- but modern developments have created other types.

1860 0.5 groshen - hannover de

Chiossone worked and studied in germany and england before being assigned to japan.   the design shown, influenced both the norway posthorn ; and the japanese koban series ...

Batz of denmark, trained the designor of posthorn.  electro-typing of cliches assigned in a random matrix of 100 .   the Norge posthorn series predated the 1876 kobans ... however, chiossone borrowed design elements for the 5 sen brown ...



an interesting parallel.

mihon 20sen ...

remarkably, the same position exists in 2 printings...   and the same perf cut .   this confirms reprints exist.
see details ...  right image may be photo-serigraph.