Grand Display of Fireworks, at the Public Garden, Swamp Concession, Yokohama, on Saturday, November 3rd, 1877...: Hirayama Jinta. Pyrotechnist, No. 68, Otamachi Shichômé, Yokohama.

UNRECORDED 1877 HIRAYAMA JINTA BROADSIDE OF A "GRAND FIREWORKS DISPLAY" TO CELEBRATE THE EMPEROR'S BIRTHDAY, THE FIRST SUCH CELEBRATION TO BE ACKNOWLEDGED BY RESIDENT FOREIGNERS

JINTA, Hirayama. Grand Display of Fireworks, at the Public Garden, Swamp Concession, Yokohama, on Saturday, November 3rd, 1877...Hirayama Jinta. Pyrotechnist, No. 68, Otamachi Shichômé, Yokohama. Folio broadside, double-column, 13 1/4 x 9". [Yokohama: 1877].

On March 25, 2012, the government of Japan sponsored a revival of Jinta's daylight fireworks display at the opening of the National Cherry Blossom Festival in Washington, D. C., to celebrate the Japan-US Cherry Blossom Centennial, part of Japan's "Japan Next Campaign" to showcase earthquake recovery, and gratitude. We quote from the 2012 press release as published in businesswire: "11:30-12:30 March 25-Revival of Daylight Fireworks...Mr. Jinta Hirayama's daylight firework is patented in US in 1883. It was 1st US patent acquired by Japanese. The replica of the patent was presented during 2010 APEC by President Obama. The Government of Japan introduce 'Revival of Daylight Fireworks' as symbol of friendly relationship between Japan-US."

An unrecorded broadside program issued to celebrate an historic occasion. Our broadside was most likely printed by one of the four main English-language newspapers and magazines in Yokohama at the time, The Japan Mail Weekly, The Japan Daily Herald, The Japan Gazette, or The Far East. An extraordinary survival, unrecorded, but not unknown at the time of the event in 1877 [see paragraph 3, line 3, below]. It dates from Hirayama Jinta's first year in business, and has the added bonus of 42-words of eye-witness manuscript notes about six of the displays by an English-speaking attendee. Ninety-two numbered displays are listed, including "Thunder and Dark Clouds"; "Weeping Willow and Foot Ball"; "Imperial Flag"; A flight of White Herons"; "Chinese Tigers"; "Three Mountain Peaks"; "Waterfall"; "Grape Vines"; "Plum Trees in Blossom"; "A Dragon breathing out balls of Fire," etc., etc. Jinta (1840-1900) founded his fireworks manufactury in Yokohoma in 1877, and his colors became famous in Britain and the United States. "Hirayama had come from Mikawa Province (modern-day Aichi Prefecture) which was famous for their fireworks and he recruited several firework artisans to come work for him. Japanese fireworks at the time primarily emitted only subdued orange hues but Hirayama is credited as being one of the first to incorporate brighter colors. And when Ulysses S. Grant visited Japan in 1879, it was Hirayama's company that was responsible for the fireworks show. In 1883, Hirayama became the first Japanese to ever register a patent in the United States-2 years before Japan even had a patent registry-for 'Daylight Fire-Works..."-www.spoon-tamago.com, November 13, 2018. As another source says, "Founded in 1877, the Hirayama company was global from its onset." The only nod to the throne here is #33, "Mikado's Crest." Interestingly, #36 is "Satsuma's Crest." The Satsuma Domain was one of the most powerful and prominent Japanese domains for several hundred years during the Edo period. It seems odd to this outsider that the Satsuma Crest would be used during a celebration for the Mikado as the Satsuma Rebellion, the last and most serious armed uprising against the new government of the Empire of Japan, had only ended a very few weeks earlier at the battle of Shiroyama, September 24, 1877, effectively ending the samurai class.

Although the program doesn't mention the Mikado, the fireworks were specifically planned to celebrate his birthday, possibly, we have read, the first time ever celebrated in Yokohama in this way. Ninety-two separate displays are listed in the program; numbers 1-3 to occur from 6 a.m. to 7 a.m.; 4-32 from 3.30 to 5.30 p.m; 33-92 from 6.30 to 12 p.m. There is a column for the firework "report" for each display, most requiring one, two or three reports, others more, such as "Silver Stars" (5), "Five Pine Trees" (5), "Peony and Chinese Lion" (4), "Crysanthemums" (5), "Shower of White, Blue and Red Stars with Crysanthemum Flowers" (10), and "Showers of Red Fire" (10). Beginning in 1883, Hirayama issued colorful illustrated catalogues of his fireworks creations. They have been digitized by the Yokohama City Library, and may be viewed online. Hirayama died in 1900, his company continued.

We quote extensively from two consecutive issues of Yokohama's English-language newspaper, The Japan Weekly Mail, presumably written by its editor, H. Collins, Saturday, November 3rd & 10th, 1877: "Wednesday, 31st [Oct.]. An enterprising pryrotechnist [sic] Hirayama Jinta, has been granted the use of the Public Gardens on the Swamp, for the purpose of making a display of fireworks on Saturday next, the 3rd proximo, in honour of the Mikado's birthday. There will be a most varied display of both day and night fireworks, as the advertisement [undoubtedly an example of what we offer here] shows the first three of which will be let off very early in the morning, as a signal that the weather promises to be favourable enough to carry out the programme in its entirety...With fine weather the real display will commence at half-past three o'clock. Accommodation will be provided for spectators in the Public Gardens, but we are authorized to state that the Cricket Ground will be opened to Ladies, and the members of the various Clubs. No charge is made by the pyrotechnist, who apparently wishes to bring himself to the notice of foreigners with a view to employment on future occasions...Notes of the Week. The present occasion of the birthday of the Mikado is the first time we believe that the anniversary has been acknowledged by the resident foreigners in any open manner. When the birthdays of Foreign Sovereigns are always duly observed and made the occasions of rejoicing, it is but the simplest mark of respect that the birthday of the Ruler of the country where we reside should be fittingly acknowledged, and doubtless from the present time the 3rd of November will be kept by foreigners, as by natives as a general holiday. Today the banks are closed...At an early hour the native town was gaily decorated with flags, the ships in harbour were dressed and at noon a Royal salute fired by the Kanagawa Fort and all the men-of-war in port. The Governor of Kanagawa receives all the Foreign Consuls at dinner at the Machigaisho this evening, and in honour of the day a grand display of both day and night fireworks is being made in the Public Gardens on the Swamp, which commenced at 3:30 p.m. and will extend until midnight....The troops have been returning day by day from the South...", after concluding the Satsuma Rebellion.

On November 10th the same newspaper carried the following notice: "In honour of the birthday of the Emperor, Saturday was observed as a general holiday...In the afternoon, commencing at half past three a display of day fireworks was given...which called together a large crowd of natives and foreigners. It is we believe the first time that an exhibition of these pyrotechnic curiosities has been given in Yokohama on so extensive a scale. To most foreigners therefore, and to our surprise to many of the Japanese the display was entirely novel. The effect of these cleverly constructed day rockets was in many instances very pleasing. They are fired to a considerable height by a heavy charge of powder from strongly hooped bamboo chambers, and on bursting display amid clouds of coloured smoke various quaint devices made of paper. Among the best were a cock and hen, a dragon pursuing a red ball, very cleverly managed, and a banquet of crysanthemums in different coloured smokes. The weather was fortunately perfectly clear and calm, and thus the various devices were shown off to the best advantage. We do not know if these fireworks have ever been seen in England, and should think that they would afford a very attractive novelty. Their cost is however exceedingly high, if our question on that point were correctly answered. In the evening a display of fireworks was given in the same place, both exhibitions being provided gratuitously by the clever maker himself, Mr. Hirayama Jinta...."

An unknown western attendee was present for the early morning and afternoon pyrotechnic displays, and added a few short comments on the program in manuscript about what they saw next to the individual display title, specifically a "Yellow Dragon in White and Black Clouds"; "Shower of several dozen of handkerchiefs"; "Red Dragon in a White Cloud"; "Lightenings in Colored Clouds"; "Yellow Crysanthemums"; "Umbrella"; "Chinese Tigers"; and "Two dozen Umbrellas", commenting, "very fine," "really clever," "handkerchief about an 1/8 of a mile high," "excellent," "perfect," "nothing seen for about a minute then at a great height an umbrella suddenly opened and descended slowly," "most comic," and for the Chinese Tiger, "There were two very clever perfect imitations high up in the sky." Folds crudely mended on verso with old paper, as well as two blank margins on recto, with no loss; moderately foxed and blank edges a little worn. Still, a very good copy of a historic broadside. 84687