The goddess of America, the fairy of the mountain, and Washington defeating the Tiger: vintage manga on the theme of US history

A specialist in the history of Japan and East Asia, Nick Kapur, opened a Twitter thread with drawings from an 1861 Japanese book written by Kanagaki Robun and illustrated by Utagawa Yoshitora. The book is dedicated to American history and the founding fathers of the United States.

Here are some particularly notable images. You can see everything at the link.

George Washington and the Goddess of America

Christopher Columbus announces the discovery of America to Queen Isabella of Spain

The War of Independence. George Washington defends his wife "Carol" from the British official "Asura" (Asura in Buddhism — a low-ranking deity)

Washington and his wife "Carol" meet an extremely young Benjamin Franklin with an impressive stretch in the squat

George Washington defeats the Tiger

And John Adams-one of the founding fathers of the United States and the future second president of the country — is fighting with a huge snake

John Adams is out in the countryside on a picnic with his elderly mother

But a huge snake appears and devours his mother while Adams is busy with a picnic basket

John Adams wants to take revenge on the snake that ate his mother, and asks for help from the mountain fairy

The fairy calls for the help of a giant eagle

Together with the eagle, John Adams kills the snake that ate his mother. The power of teamwork!

Keywords: Illustrations | Drawings | USA | Japan

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