The Final Days of Feudal Japan (16 photos)

These rare photographs offer a glimpse into life in Japan in 1908, prior to industrialization and two world wars. Life then appeared remarkably idyllic. While modern Japan is synonymous with a relentless, fast-paced rhythm, back then people enjoyed a much more carefree and unhurried existence. Horse-drawn carriages clattered along cobble streets, fully clothed locals took leaps into the sea, and children twirled parasols.





The images are drawn from a collection by Arnold Genthe, a German-born American scholar who spent six months roaming Japanese streets with a camera. Following his death, the Library of Congress purchased roughly 20,000 previously unpublished photographs from his studio, which was best known for documenting San Francisco's Chinatown.

The collection captures the Meiji period, which ran from 1868 to 1912. It was during this era that Japan transformed from a feudal realm into a modern nation.