DescriptionThis is an original Japanese photographic record of the Tokyo War Crimes Trial, officially the International Military Tribunal for the Far East (IMTFE), held in postwar Tokyo to prosecute senior Japanese political and military leaders after World War II.The cover is titled:“Tokyo Trial Photographic Record”Inside appears the heading:“Japan’s Military Leaders on Trial – Courtroom Photographic Record”with photographs supplied by Kyodo News Service.One of the most fascinating aspects of this book is its date.The publication information states:Printed: July 15, 1948
Published: July 20, 1948The Tokyo Trial did not conclude until November 12, 1948. In other words, this book was published while the trial itself was still taking place, several months before the final judgment. This makes it very different from a later historical retrospective.When the original owner opened this book in July 1948, the final fate of the defendants had not yet been decided.The pages contain photographs and information concerning the defendants, including former Japanese Prime Minister Hideki Tojo, together with material documenting the courtroom proceedings and the personalities involved.That contemporary timing is also what makes surviving examples especially interesting to collectors.This was produced in Japan only three years after the end of World War II, during the Allied Occupation, when the country was still physically and politically rebuilding. Unlike later books created after decades of historical reflection, this volume captures the Tokyo Trial as a current event.Large-format photographic publications from the immediate postwar period were also vulnerable to deterioration, disposal, humidity, and ordinary household clearing over the following decades. The fact that an original example has survived for nearly eight decades gives it an additional archival character.For collectors of Imperial Japanese history, this represents an unusual transition point.It is not an artifact from Japan while the Empire was fighting the war.It is an artifact from the moment immediately afterward, when the men who had led Imperial Japan were sitting in a courtroom and history was deciding how their actions would be judged.Original material relating directly to the IMTFE remains a serious field of archival study today; major institutional collections preserve trial records, photographs, court exhibits, and related contemporary material. You already know the ending.The person who first owned this book did not.That is what makes this more than simply an old photo book—it is a surviving document from a moment when history was still unfolding.
Condition:
This is an original 1948 publication and shows age-related wear. The cover has surface wear, marks, and edge wear.
The interior pages and photographic contents remain intact and are generally well preserved for their age. Please review all photos carefully for the exact condition.
Own a Piece of History.Shipping
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Provided by HARU
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