“The Origins of Manga – Five volumes of Hokusai’s Seminal Manga series - With Elephants and Rokurokubi” -Five Hokusai Manga Volumes: 1,4,12,13 & 14 -Published in Nagoya by Eirakuya Tôshirô from -1814-1878 -Complete volumes 22,7 x 15,7 cm Manga is a hugely popular form of Japanese art and culture today with a myriad of books published each year. The origins of Manga, however, come from Hokusai’s 19th Century series of 15 books published from 1819-1878. Manga originally meant “sketches”, and his works were a series of drawing studies. Unlike modern Manga, there was less of a storyline in these early books, which were meant to entertain and inform readers. Highlights in these books include an early Hokusai portrayal of an Elephant, and the Rokurokubi – an ancient Japanese spirit whose heads were able to detach and float around the room, especially at night time! Good condition but wear and dirt to covers with damage to title slip, some bindings loosening. Soft covers as issued. Provenence: Berès Gallery Paris. Rare Early editions of volumes 1,4,12,13 & 14 of the first ever Manga series.