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Edo period

This beautiful Starbucks just outside Tokyo has an aural connection to Japan’s samurai past【Pics】

Your eyes will love the traditional Japanese garden, but keep your ears open for a sound that’s been marking life in this town for centuries.

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We visited Tokyo’s samurai-period style cat cafe, and here’s why you should too【Photos】

The Edo Neko Chaya has a beautiful interior, charming kitties, and a heartwarming mission.

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Edo Cat Cafe closure postponed as 50 rescue cats still need foster parents

After creating a stunning samurai-themed ukiyo-e world for their cats, this organisation is refusing to give up on them.

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Edo-Period Japanese book depicts U.S. history in hilariously awesome illustrations

It may not be historically accurate, but it’s one-hundred percent real!

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What would a samurai-era cat cafe look like? Like the brand-new Edo Cat Cafe opening in Tokyo!

Take a trip back in time and into feline cuteness with this new cat cafe in one of Tokyo’s most history-rich neighborhoods.

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We visit Japan’s only specialty toothpick store to buy products steeped in 300-year-old history

When samurai needed toothpicks during the Edo period, this store had everything they were looking for.

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We bring you three more traditional Japanese recipes from centuries past

This time on the menu – octopus sushi bowl, flower-shaped eggs, and an “ice cube” tofu dessert!

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Tokyo’s newest sushi restaurant is actually way too Japanese for its own good

There’s a fine line between having enough Japanese touches to feel authentic, and having so many it starts to feel fake.

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Edo-era recipes are published online, give us a chance to try Japanese foods from centuries past

Vegetarians can rejoice, as meatless options abound!

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Edo era-themed sushi restaurant to bring delicious food, historical decor to Tokyo this month

Take a trip back in time, and enjoy some sushi while you’re at it!

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Evidence that ‘kawaii’ has ruled Japanese pop culture for centuries!

A collection of playful prints from over 200 years ago prove that Japan’s highly-refined sense of cute has a very long history indeed.

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Style your hair like an old-school Japanese beauty with the marumage hair kit【Video】

Once a hairstyle for married women of samurai families, this kit provides the tools for anyone to tackle this traditional ‘do in minutes!

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Go back in time and hang with geisha and samurai in virtual reality Edo-period Tokyo 【Video】

Just be sure you’re wearing proper 19th-century attire – you don’t want to get any funny looks.

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Edo-era illustrated records show the disasters that have plagued Japan throughout its history

Fires, floods, and famine have all been a part of Japan’s historical past.

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History’s worst job? Japanese noblewomen used to hire servants to take the blame for their farts

What would be the ultimate luxury in personal service for a highborn aristocrat? Someone to draw your bath? Peel your grapes? Fan you with palm fronds? How about a servant whose job it is to take the blame for your farts.

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If there’s one thing that hasn’t changed over the course of human history, it’s humans. Sure, we like to pretend that we’re above nature and instincts by carrying around fancy phones and sending people into space, but when it really comes down to it, we’re all still mostly interested in the same exact same thing that humans thousands of years ago were interested in.

If you need further proof, then check out the upcoming Shunga Exhibit in Tokyo of erotic Edo Period woodblock prints. The pictures on display there aren’t too far off from what the Japanese adult media world produces today. Just be sure your boss isn’t looking over your shoulder while you get your Japanese history lesson, because these pictures are not safe for work!

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Even a master Japanese painter was up for some adorable monkey business

Jakuchu Ito (伊藤若冲), who lived from 1716-1800, was one of Japan’s most prolific painters during the nation’s Edo period of isolation from the rest of the world. The majority of his works were in the form of hanging scroll paintings, and while they often depicted incredibly intricate scenes from the natural world, one Japanese net user was pleasantly surprised to stumble upon this picture of a mother and child gibbon that appears decidedly more playful in nature, and it’s sure to melt your heart!

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The Artist’s Daughter: the girl behind Hokusai’s prints

Hokusai Katsushika is known throughout the world for his masterpieces such as The Great Wave off Kanagawa, seen on many a dorm wall, and his Thirty-Six Views of Mount Fuji. He is the ‘father’ of Japanese woodblock prints, or ukiyo-e, and can be credited with popularizing the Japanese art form in the West during the 1800s.

But it’s possible that the prolific artist had help from one of his daughters, who was also a talented ukiyo-e artist in her own right. Read on for a look at some of her spectacular pieces.

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200 Years Old And Still Irresistibly Adorable! A Timeless Image of “Cute” From the Edo Period

Okay, this little fella is seriously cute!  (And I’m not talking about the big black bull in the painting above, but the small white ball of fur in the bottom center — see him?) It’s hard to believe he’s more than 200 years old, or at least his picture is. Yes, dogs have been man’s best friend for a long time, and this particular picture that has been capturing the heart of modern internet users of late goes to prove that our love of dogs (and all things furry and adorable for that matter) truly transcend time. Just look at the little guy’s fluffy white coat and innocent puppy eyes. No wonder the image has been making net users go all gooey! Read More