Samurai: An Illustrated History
Product ID: 1714316
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Samurai: An Illustrated History brings the violent, tumultuous, and, at the same time, elegant world of the medieval Japanese samurai to life. This Japanese history book traces the story of a unique historical phenomenon: a period of 700 years—equivalent to the entire stretch of Western history between the reigns of the Crusader king Richard the Lionhearted and of Queen Victoria at the height of the British Empire—during which an enclosed civilization was dominated by a single warrior caste. The historical narrative of samurai history is supported by explanations of samurai armor, weapons, fortifications, tactics, and customs, and illustrated with nearly 800 fascinating color photographs, maps, and sketches, including ancient scroll paintings and surviving suits of armor preserved for centuries in Japanese shrines. From the 12th to the 19th centuries the history of Japan was mainly the history of the samurai—the class of professional fighting men. At first, they were no more than lowly soldiery employed by the court aristocracy of Kyoto, but the growing power of the provincial warrior clans soon enabled them to brush aside the executive power of the imperial court and to form a parallel military government. Though individual dynasties came and went in cycles of vigor and decadence, the dominance of the samurai as a class proved uniquely resilient. Review: Highly insightful - Although some of the final chapters are hard to follow, the first part of the book follows a nice chronological study of samurai and the evolution of armor. I came at this as a relative novice but was able to glean a lot of understanding for just one book. I expect I will return to this book in the future both as reference and to dive deeper into some of the specifics around individuals and their campaigns. Review: Beautiful and informative book on traditional Japanese costumes. - Love this beautifully illustrated and informative book. Bought a cheap used copy at a book sale to use for collage, but liked it so much I bought a second copy online just to have.
| Best Sellers Rank | #565,197 in Books ( See Top 100 in Books ) #23 in Sword & Knife Collecting #568 in Japanese History (Books) #1,112 in Martial Arts (Books) |
| Customer Reviews | 4.8 out of 5 stars 257 Reviews |
T**N
Highly insightful
Although some of the final chapters are hard to follow, the first part of the book follows a nice chronological study of samurai and the evolution of armor. I came at this as a relative novice but was able to glean a lot of understanding for just one book. I expect I will return to this book in the future both as reference and to dive deeper into some of the specifics around individuals and their campaigns.
M**Y
Beautiful and informative book on traditional Japanese costumes.
Love this beautifully illustrated and informative book. Bought a cheap used copy at a book sale to use for collage, but liked it so much I bought a second copy online just to have.
C**N
If you are interested in learning about the samurai in any way you will not be disappointed with this must have book. Buy it !
One of the top books(In my opinion) about the Japanese Samurai. This book includes a breakdown of every piece of the Armour worn by the samurai and the weapons they used, the history of how and why the armor was developed.An Abundance of the History of the samurai class and the Military government that controlled them. A wealth of info on some of the top samurai clans and history of their battles. Also Lots of Great colored photos. If you are interested in learning about the samurai in any way you will not be disappointed with this must have book. Buy it !
C**Y
Remarkable Book!
I am new to collecting/reading books on the Samurai periods in Japan,and with all due respect to Dr.Steven Turnbull and many of the other prolific authors on this subject,this is the perfect book to start.With wonderfully clear drawings,coupled with the brilliant use of photos of Samurai re-enactors(many descended from the samurai themselves) the arms and armor are much clearer to understand.Too often in this type of book,they will use static photos of armour on display,or worse,the highly stylized art depicting the samurai warrior.In this book,however,you can actually see how the armour was worn.Every collector and student of samurai history should have this book in their collection.
A**R
this book is wonderful, full of information and excellent photographs and prints
In the condition described, this book is wonderful, full of information and excellent photographs and prints. The reproductions are of a good quality.
P**E
A great book about the history of the Samurai.
In my opinion, you can't ask for a better historical book about the samurai, how they lived, how the prepared for war, the clothing they wore, their religion, and etc. Buy it! I don't think you need any other historical book about the Samurai.
G**N
Beautiful book
Bought this as a Christmas gift. The book and it's photos are very, very nice! A must for anyone who is a fan of the samurai culture.
K**E
I bought this as a gift for someone....
who studies Ninjitsu (Art of Ninjas) and is fascinated with Samurais and Japanese Culture.The book is beautiful and is just absolutely stunning. I have not read the literature yet, so I can't comment on how it was written. It is full of pictures and fantastic artwork. It was a good price and I would recommend it to anyone who is also fascinated with Samurais.
ア**郎
知人が執筆したということで
知人が執筆したということで、購入しました。 なかなかの出来で、売れているとの評判です。 到着次第、感想をプラスします。
S**O
Libro sui samurai con molte foto
Bel libro in inglese in buona carta patinata con la storia dei Samurai. Ricco si illustrazioni e foto quasi su ogni pagina (soprattutto moderne ed a colori e che raffigurano moderni attori vestiti con armature fedelmente ricostruite, castelli, ecc). Spazio dedicato anche alle guerre ed una cronologia delle più importanti campagne militari. Attenzione poche le foto di armi o spade (per queste ci sono libri più specialistici)
N**,
Leider ist der Einband etwas kaputt
Das Buch hat alle nötigen Informationen die man braucht. Ich habe es als Gebrauchte Version gekauft und das sieht man dem Buch auch leider an. Der Einband ist bereits an eingen Stellen stark in Mitleidenschaft geraten aber im Buch gibt es bisher keine Schäden. Ich werde den Einband wohl nochmal mit einem Schutzumschlag zusätzlich schützen und vor weiteren Schäden schützen. Ansonsten kann ich das Buch jedem empfehlen der mehr über die Samurai und ihre Geschichte sowie Waffen erfahren will.
2**K
Five Stars
Great product
S**N
Japanese Samurai History
A beautifully illustrated history of Japanese samurai
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