DAI NIHON YOCHI BINRAN: EASILY READ MAP [ATLAS] OF JAPAN. [Alternate English Tit

[Mino 1834]. Buff blind-stamped dragon embossed covers, 2 volume set, 70 color woodblock printed maps, very good, 18 x 26 cm.,accordion folded, several old worm hole mends on back side, excellent registery & impression. FIRST & ONLY EDITION . *** **** *** . . A RARE TWO VOLUME SET . . . THE COMPLETE ATLAS OF ALL "KUNI" PROVINCES IN JAPAN . . .INCLUDING A WORLD MAP SHOWING CALIFORNIA AS AN ISLAND . * THE ATLAS: This excellent atlas contains 70 double-page color woodblock illustrations, covering the Kuni [provinces]] on Honshu, Shikoku & Kyushu islands. Hokkaido's south shore, Okinawa area vaguely shown.. The last illustration is a lovely early map of the world, showing California as an Island.. . Each Kuni is illustrated in multi-colors. With red boxes for district names, green for mountains, blue for ocean, blue or green for rivers & lakes with yellow for village names. For a complete list of all provinces, see Beans below. . The last map in volume 2 is of the world, showing China in the center, with Africa and Europe at the left, north & south Americas to the right, lacking good detail & missing Mexico. . The atlas was edited by SAITO Ken, woodblocks carved by Shoh Getsu Doh. . *** CALIFORNIA AS AN ISLAND SHOWN: Of major interest is California, shown as an island. This 2 volume set may have used one or more European maps as a model for the world map, which showed California as an island. See Mclaughlin below for a full list. . The first mention of California as an island is in Garci Rodriguez de Montalvo’s "Las Sergas de Esplandián," published in 1510. . It was not until Father Eusebio Kino’s map entitled: "A Passage by Land to California," informed by his travels between 1698 and 1701, that this cartographic blunder was exposed . *** CONDITION: . The book is bound in the original publisher's tan paper covered boards, with a blind-stamped dragon embossed on all 4 covers. The covers are a bit dusty on the back of volume 2, otherwise the usual rubbing on all covers, edges, with title slips. Firmly and solidly bound. . The contents are very clean, no stains or marks. There is some old, mended worming, mostly mended from the back side, very little loss, majority is limited to the edges, maps are not affected. . Seldom found complete in 2 volumes with all maps. . *** Color photos are posted to our website. . *** REFERENCE: . MCLAUGHLIN, Glen. et al. THE MAPPING OF CALIFORNIA AS AN ISLAND: An Illustrated Checklist. This shows some 800 examples. * STANFORD UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES: The Glen McLaughlin Map Collection of California as an Island. See their website for a complete list & photos of most examples. This set of 2 volumes is NOT listed. * BEANS, George H.: A LIST OF JAPANESE MAPS OF THE TOKUGAWA ERA. 4 volume set, cited in LIST, p.35-36, 1834. This entry also shows the complete list of 70 maps with dates, name of the province.It lacks the author's name but cites "Matsu" as editor. * RAMMING, M. [Martin].: KATALOG DER AUSSTELLUNG ALTER JAPANISCHER KARTEN UND PLAENE. 1934, no.24 * NORDENSKIOLD, A.E.: THE VOYAGE OF THE VEGA ROUND ASIA AND EUROPE: With A Historical Review Of previous Journeys Along The North Coast Of The Old World. See p.179, no. 60. He lists [no.378] another plan of the same year but slightly different title. As cited in Beans, footnote 121, p.35. . * AKIOKA, Takejiro: NIHON CHIZU SHI: HISTORY OF JAPANESE MAPS, page 156, 1955. . * .