THE SACRED DEER OF NARA

Nara Park, Japan — Sacred Deer of Kasuga [Real Photo Postcard / RPPC]

OVERVIEW: THE SACRED DEER OF NARA. Nara, Japan, c. 1918–1933.
An atmospheric prewar Japanese photographic postcard showing a stag and two spotted deer at Nara, long associated with nearby Kasuga Shrine. The unusually close portrait-like composition places the animals themselves at the center of the image rather than presenting them merely as elements of a conventional tourist view.

Vintage real photo postcard depicting three of the celebrated deer of Nara Park beneath mature trees. Captioned in red in Japanese and English, 'Kasugadeer Nara.' Unposted and unused.

The image is documented in the historical postcard collection of the Nara Prefectural Library and Information Center, where an example is catalogued among Nara Park postcards dating from approximately 1918 to 1933.

PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS: A PREWAR JAPANESE REAL PHOTO POSTCARD. 
Horizontal photographic postcard, approximately standard postcard format, with sepia-toned photographic image to recto. Red Japanese caption with English caption 'Kasugadeer Nara.' beneath.

Divided postcard back printed 'POST CARD', with vertical Japanese postal-card inscription at right and outlined stamp box. No publisher or photographer identification is apparent from the images supplied.

CONDITION: VERY GOOD VINTAGE CONDITION:. Image remains clear and well defined, with modest age-related surface wear. Rear shows scattered soiling and age toning, particularly toward the margins. Unposted, with no message, address, stamp, or postal cancellation.

THE SACRED DEER OF KASUGA AND NARA—MORE THAN A TOURIST ATTRACTION. 
Nara's deer have a longstanding religious association with Kasuga. In the Kasuga tradition, the deity Takemikazuchi traveled from Kashima to Mount Mikasa on a deer, and deer consequently came to be regarded as sacred messengers associated with the shrine. The imagery of the sacred Kasuga deer appears in Japanese religious art centuries before the development of modern tourism at Nara.

GENRES: Real Photo Postcards, Japanese Postcards, Travel Ephemera, Photographic Ephemera, Animal Photography, Prewar Japanese Photography

SUBJECTS: Nara, Nara Park, Kasuga Shrine, Kasuga Taisha, Sacred Deer, Sika Deer, Japan, Japanese Tourism, Taishō Period, Early Shōwa Period, Travel Photography.

Item #22539

Price: $24.00