AMANO (Akira).
Taiso zukai [Illustrated guide to physical exercise].
The first exercise textbook for Japanese schoolchildren
The highly rare first edition of the first book by the Ministry of Education which outlines the newly issued physical exercise programme for elementary schools in Japan. In other words: the first PE textbook in Japan.
The Meiji government were keen to promote physical health in growing children. For the first time, there was a plan to set out a gymnastics programme for schools so that children would learn exercises as part of the curriculum. At this stage, it was not seen as a competitive sport, but purely a means to maintain good health. Within the book we are provided with 40 different exercises, all wonderfully illustrated with diagrams to show the exact movement of the arms, legs and torso. This was a highly influential first text, which was revised a number of times.
The editor/author of this book was a man named Amano Akira (1851–1897). Amano was born to a noble samurai family in the city of Edo and was in the very first graduating class of the Tokyo Koto Shihan Gakko (Tokyo Higher Normal School), a higher education institute for teacher training. After spending some time in teaching Amano climbed to the upper echelons of the Ministry of Education, where he had an influential role in advocation for changes to the curriculum, including the addition of physical education.
Rare. No copies of the first edition outside of Japan listed on OCLC. We are especially pleased to offer this book with its original printed envelope (fukuro).
