Kyoto University Library Network

Four rare materials held by the Graduate School of Letters, Yukawa Institute for Theoretical Physics (YITP) and the Center for Ecological Research, Kyoto University (CER) have been newly digitized and released. The digitization has been realized thanks to the support from donors to Kyoto University Rare Materials Digital Archive Fund.

“李卓吾先生批點忠義水滸傳 10回 (存2回)” and “忠義水滸傳 100巻100回 (存98巻98回)” held by the Graduate School of Letters
[Water Margin (Chinese: 水滸傳; pinyin: Shuǐhǔ Zhuàn)]
These are the only copies that exist today other than the ones held by the National Library of China. Researchers presume that Takizawa Bakin, a Japanese writer of the early 19th century, read these exact copies.

“A text-book of physics. 5th ed., rev. / edited by A. Wilmer Duff (Blakiston, 1921)” held by YITP
Dr. Hideki Yukawa, a Nobel Laureate in Physics in 1949, used this textbook when he was a student at the then Third High School (Daisan Koto Gakko) and kept it by his side even after he became a researcher. The book has many notes and annotations by his hand in the margin.

“湖中産物圖證” Kochu sanbutsu zusho held by CER
This book is vital in the research of the history of biology in Japan, because it is presumed to be the first illustrated book of aquatic life in Lake Biwa. It includes all the species of carps and crucians, as well as aquatic life other than fish and shellfish, such as an otter. Its beautiful colors are still vivid.

Thirteen architectural plans during the Edo Period from Nakai Collection held by Kyoto University Main Library have been newly digitized and released in Kyoto University Rare Materials Digital Archive. The Digital Archive provides 1,333,705 images of 14,372 titles as of January 27, 2020.

Nakai Collection consists of the plans of Nijo Castle, Kyoto Imperial Palace, Shimogamo Shrine and other shrines and temples, concerning documents and maps passed down through the Nakai Family, the Tokugawa Government's master carpenter family in Kyoto. The newly released data is part of Bakufu-no-bu (幕府之部; Tokugawa Government) relating to Kyoto Shoshidai (京都所司代; Shogun's senior representative monitoring the Imperial Court in Kyoto), Kyoto Shugoshoku (京都守護職; military commissioner of Kyoto) and other Tokugawa Government offices.

“Keiou ganushidoshi hachigatsu shugoshoku oyakutaku kamiyashiki dekigata ezu tadashi yonbukei (慶応元丑年八月 守護職御役宅上屋舗出来形絵図 但四分計)” is an architectural plan of the entire residence of Kyoto Shugoshoku and includes the layout of the buildings and rooms as well as the details of their fittings. This rare material tells us the situations at the end of the Edo Period. Kyoto Shugoshoku is Tokugawa Government’s position newly established in 1862 to maintain the security of Kyoto, to which Katamori Matsudaira (1836-1893), Lord of the Aizu Clan, was appointed. He first placed the headquarters at Konkai Komyo-ji (金戒光明寺) in Higashiyama, and then the construction of the residence was started in 1863 and completed in 1865. The premises border Shinmachi-dori (新町通) to the East, Nishinotoin-dori (西洞院通) to the West, Shimotachiuri-dori (下立売通) to the South and Shimochojamachi-dori (下長者町通) to the North. There were barracks for Clan soldiers along each border. Kyoto Shugoshoku was abolished by Osei Fukko no Daigorei (王政復古の大号令; the Decree for the Restoration of Imperial Rule) just about two months after Taisei Hokan (大政奉還; Restoration of Imperial Rule) in 1868.

Thirteen titles of rare materials held by Kyoto University Main Library, the Graduate School of Letters and the Graduate School of Science have been digitized and released in Kyoto University Rare Materials Digital Archive. The Digital Archive provides 1,333,705 images of 14,372 titles as of January 27, 2020.

Kyoto University Library Network is digitizing and releasing rare material held by Main Library and other libraries on campuses every year as part of the "Open Access Promotion Project". The newly released images the original materials of which are held by Main Library and the Graduate School of Science are available for users to copy, adapt or redistribute in any medium without application or fee, if their originals' holding libraries are indicated. Please refer to "Guide for Content Reuse" for more details.

Atlas der Pflanzengeographie über alle theile der Erde Graduate School of Science

Kyoto University's rare materials are now searchable on WorldCat, the world's most comprehensive database of information about library collections delivered by OCLC (Online Computer Library Center, Inc.).

[Search result of WorldCat Discovery]

Click [Access online] and you can see the search result of Kyoto University OPAC KULINE, which leads you to digital images in Kyoto University Rare Materials Digital Archive.

Kyoto University Library Network is promoting the digitization of rare primary sources Kyoto University holds and their dissemination on the Internet so that the World can easily find them.

The Maintenance work was completed (Dec. 25, 2019 11:55) and the service has been restored.

Kyoto University Rare Materials Digital Archive will suspend its service due to the system maintenance for about 2 hours from 10:00am, December 25, 2019.

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Zokyo Shoin Collection consists of Buddhist sutras and books collected from the archives of temples by a publisher in Kyoto, Zokyo Shoin and is categorized in four sections: “Zokyo Shoin-bon”, “Nichizo-bon (published)”, “Nichizo-bon (unpublished)” and “Shinshu-bon”. Among these, 54 items from “Zokyo Shoin-bon” and 20 “Nichizo-bon (unpublished)” have been newly digitized and released. As of November 20, 2019, Kyoto University Rare Materials Digital Archive provides 1,290,729 images of 14,328 titles.

Zokyo Shoin-bon is a collection of Buddhist sutras and books used as original text for Dainihon Zoku Zokyo, which was compiled under the leadership of Tatsue Nakano (1871-1934) and published by Zokyo Shoin from April 1905 to 1912. Dainihon Zoku Zokyo consists of 750 volumes of Buddhist sutras and books in 150 cases selected from 6,957 volumes of original texts written by over 950 Buddhists collected from the archives of temples. Zoku Zokyo includes many noted writings by Indian or Chinese Buddhists, which previously published Dainihon Kotei Kunten Daizokyo did not cover.

Nichizo-bon (unpublished) is composed of the books on Japanese Buddhism collected for a planned but unrealized sequel to Nihon Daizokyo, a Zokyo in 48 volumes compiled in Japan including writings by more than 300 Japanese Buddhists. The collection includes writings by Buddhist priests of great learning of every Japanese Buddhist sect.

The digitization of part of the materials released this time is supported by Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research (JP19HP8002).
 

Ninety-two items from Shimada Bankon's Shugendo Collection "Shimada Collection" have been newly digitized and released.

▼Shimada Collection

"Shimada Collection" is a unique collection of books on Shugendo, Japanese mountain asceticism-shamanism incorporating Shinto and Buddhist concepts, into which Shimada Bankon (島田蕃根; 1827-1907), a buddhologist during the Meiji era, combined documents handed down through the Shimada family and his own collection.

Shimada Bankon was born in Tokuyama, currently Yamaguchi Prefecture, in 1827 and died of an illness in Kyoto at the age of 81 in 1907. Having learned Shugendo and Buddhism in Hieizan and Miidera respectively, he was well-informed about each sect of Buddhism. In the beginning of the Meiji era, he returned to secular life and became a professor at Kojokan (興譲館), a domain school of the Mori family. He came up with a plan to publish Daizokyo (大蔵経; reduced-size ed.) and established Kokyo-shoin (弘教書院) with Fukuda Gyokai (福田行誡; 1809-1888) in 1879. In five years of hard work, the large-scale enterprise resulted in the publication of 419 volumes of Daizokyo. He is also well known for his enthusiasm to collect and preserve Buddhism books.

The Main Library of Kyoto University takes part as a core university in the "Project to Build an International Collaborative Research Network for Pre-modern Japanese Texts (NIJL-NW project)" led by the National Institute of Japanese Literature, which supports the digitization of the 92 books released this time.

A new collection "Mathematics in Classics (Dep. Math.)" of 592 books has been released. This collection consists of books on Wasan, or Japanese mathematics, including astronomy, Chinese classics, as well as Western mathematics held by the Department of Mathematics, Mathematics Library, Graduate School of Science, Kyoto University.

▼Mathematics in Classics (Dep. Math.)

Wasan, or Japanese mathematics, developed in Japan independently from the Western mathematics, through the Edo Period and the Meiji Era. It has fostered many math enthusiasts among general Japanese people and a custom called Sangaku hono (算額奉納), dedication of Ema (votive picture of a horse) to shrines when difficult problems were solved, became popular. The collection includes Jinko-ki (塵劫記), an introductory book that triggered enthusiasm in mathematics among Japanese people, and Katsuyo Sanpo (括要算法), a posthumous collection of Seki Takakazu's works.

Many books that have played significant roles in the progress of Western mathematics are also available: Euclid's Elementorum, Apollonius’s Conicorum, and Diophantus’s Arithmeticorum (our holding is the same edition as the one on which Fermat wrote the famous "Last Theorem" in the margin). Anyone who is interested in mathematics can enjoy the development of mathematics through these books.

The digital archive provides 1,262,613 images of 14,162 titles as of October 30, 2019.