Commemorating the Issuance of New Banknotes:The “Faces” of the New Notes as Seen through JACAR

1.Introduction

This year on July 3 saw the issuance of new 1,000-yen, 5,000-yen, and 10,000-yen banknotes. The designs were completely renewed, and moreover they incorporated new counterfeit-prevention technologies such as being the first in the world to adopt 3D holograms.

The portraits used on banknotes have been selected for three reasons: one, from an anti-counterfeiting perspective, it is possible to obtain extremely detailed photographs of the subject; two, from a portrait engraving perspective, they are portraits suited to a dignified banknote; and three, the individual portrayed is widely known by all segments of the population and their achievements are broadly acknowledged. The portraits for the current banknotes have been all chosen from among persons from Meiji period and later.

To commemorate the issuance of the new banknotes, in this article I will use documents available through JACAR to introduce Japan’s first banknotes with a portrait from the Meiji period, and also the three individuals whose portraits were selected for the new banknotes: SHIBUSAWA Eiichi, TSUDA Umeko, and KITASATO Shibasaburō.

 

2. The Issuance of Japan’s First Banknotes with a Portrait

Japan’s first banknotes that would be accepted nationwide were issued in 1868. The Meiji government of the day issued government banknotes that would be honored throughout the country in order to pull through harsh financial circumstances caused, for example, by raising funds to cope with the Boshin War, and also in order to demonstrate to the entire nation the prestige of the new government. Additionally, for the style of the notes they used designs such as phoenixes and dragons that symbolized the emperor (see Image 1). Because these banknotes were issued by the Accounting Bureau of the Council of State (Dajōkan), they were generally referred to as “Dajōkan notes” (Dajōkan-satsu). However, because the paper and printing methods used were exactly the same as those of the domain scrip (hansatsu) that each domain and printed and issued during the Edo period, counterfeit notes were rife, such as those from Fukuoka domain discussed in an item from the JACAR database (Item: “Fukuoka-han gansatsu seizō no to oyobi chiji ika shobun ni tsuki tenmatsu,” Ref.A15071438300).

The remodeled banknotes issued starting in 1881 incorporated portraits produced using watermarks and engraved plates on the note paper as anti-counterfeiting measures, making them Japan’s first banknotes with portraits (see Image 2). The legendary Empress Jingū was selected as the portrait’s subject. The reason for the selection, according to an 1877 Ministry of Finance document titled, “Kaizō shihei hinagata o sadamu” [Decision on the pattern for the remodeled banknote], was that Empress Jingū was “the originator (ranshō) of the imperial currency” that introduced Japan to the existence of currency, according to an account in ‘The Chronicles of Japan’ (Nihon shoki), (Item: “Kaizō shihei hinagata o sadamu,” Ref. A24011754800, image 2).

As to the portrait selection, at one point the decision was made to use a portrait of the Emperor Meiji. This was based on the example of other countries having used portraits of their own monarchs. However, a note reading, “ The proposal of the Ministry of Finance to include a portrait of the Empress Jingū will bring no inconvenience: Abide by an Emeperor’s decision.” was attached to a formal Council of State decision titled, “Kaizō shihei hinagata no gi ni tsuki ukagai.“ Ultimately, the portrait of Empress Jingū was selected by Emperor Meiji himself (“Kaizō shihei hinagata no gi ni tsuki ukagai,” National Archives of Japan [Kō-02078100-021, image 10]). Today, including Bank of Japan notes and government-issued paper money, 20 persons have been depicted as portraits on banknotes.

 

3. The New 10,000 Yen Note: SHIBUSAWA Eiichi

Besides having served as general supervisor and president of the First National Bank (Dai-ichi Kokuritsu Ginkō), SHIBUSAWA Eiichi (1840-1931)—the man whose portrait has been selected for the new 10,000-yen note—also devoted his energies to founding and developing many modern enterprises such as Oji Paper and Tokyo Gas. In this article, I want to highlight his efforts in the area of international goodwill through “civil diplomacy,” as it were.

SHIBUSAWA had observed Europe’s industries and systems when he accompanied Japan’s delegation to the Paris Exposition of 1867, an experience that he applied to founding and managing companies and organizations. But he also went on devoting his energies to international exchange, such as by attracting and entertaining foreign visitors in his role as president of the Kihinkai, or “Welcome Society”—a predecessor to the present-day Japan National Tourism Organization. SHIBUSAWA played a particularly major role in the Honorary Commercial Commissioners of Japan to the US (Tobei Jitsugyō Dan).

Behind the creation of this delegation lay the issue of Anti-Japanese movement, which had intensified in the US starting around 1906. Responding to the problem, in October 1908 the Chambers of Commerce from cities around Japan invited a delegation from the Chambers of Commerce of the Pacific Coast of the United States to come to Japan as a form of bilateral exchange. By way of reciprocating the invitation, the following year Chambers of Commerce around the US made the decision to invite a delegation of Japanese businessmen to the US. SHIBUSAWA, who had served as president of the Tokyo Chamber of Commerce through March 1905, in his role as head put together the delegation of commercial commissioners. The delegation comprised 50 persons from the private sector, drawn mainly from the Chambers of Commerce of six major Japanese cities including Tokyo and Osaka. They spent three months visiting major cities around the US (the itinerary saw them arrive in Seattle on September 1, 1909, reach New York City on October 12, arrive in San Francisco on November 26, and make their last stop in Honolulu on December 6). In the JACAR database, you can find a file of records related to the Honorary Commercial Commissioners titled, “Beikoku Taiheiyō-engan Rengō Shōgyō Kaigisho yori Honpō meishi shōtai seppan ikken” (Ref. B10073732900).

Japanese diplomats in each city reported on how the delegation of Honorary Commercial Commissioners was received. For example, the report on their visit to Portland, Oregon, on September 9–10 notes that, in his remarks delivered at a dinner party hosted by the local Chamber of Commerce, SHIBUSAWA said, “We owe much to the US for the great material progress that Japan has made in a short period of time.” In response, in their welcoming remarks a representative for Oregon’s governor said, “It is the desire of both the US and Japanese governments to promote the development of free and peaceful commerce across the Pacific Ocean” (see Image 4).

We can also find a report about the delegation’s meeting with then-US President William H. TAFT on September 19 at a luncheon hosted by a Minneapolis businessmen’s club. The report notes, for example, after SHIBUSAWA’s speech, President TAFT, giving a toast, chanted a “Banzai!” to the Japanese emperor, to which the Japanese delegation responded with three “Banzai!” cheers of their own for President TAFT. President TAFT then offered his formal welcome to the delegation. In his remarks, he also said that the recent anti-Japanese sentiment in the US was felt by only one segment of the populace, suggesting it was being imprudently stirred up (see Image 5).

The delegation’s visit was also taken up by US media outlets and in local Chambers of Commerce. For example, Chicago Commerce, a public relations magazine put out by the Chicago Association of Commerce, ran a group photograph of the honorary commissioners as well as individual photographs of key members of the delegation (see Images 6 and 7).

Upon the delegation’s departure from San Francisco on December 1, SHIBUSAWA sent a telegram addressed to the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Japan. Talking of the US trip, he reported, “Thanks to the virtue and prestige of His Imperial Majesty, we received a welcome beyond expectation, and are even happier than expected at having been able to advance ‘people-to-people diplomacy’ another step forward” (“Tobei Jitsugyō Dan Sōkō shuppatsu ni nozomi hōkoku no ken,” Item: “Part 6” (Ref.B10073733700, image 61). SHIBUSAWA visited the US many times after this, and in 1926 and 1927 was recommended as a candidate for the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts to promote goodwill between Japan and the US (see Image 8).

 

4. The New 5,000 Yen Note: TSUDA Umeko

TSUDA Umeko (1864–1929), whose portrait has been selected for the new 5,000-yen note (see Image 9), was an educator who devoted her life working to raise the status of women and promote higher education for them. In this article, I will focus mainly on the tracks she set down in the United States.

In 1871 at the age of 6 (8, using the traditional kazoedoshi style of age reckoning style in use at the time), TSUDA was selected to be one of Japan’s first female study-abroad students. She would go on to study in the US for 11 years at government expense. The five girls including TSUDA who went abroad had been recruited by the Hokkaido Colonization Commission with the goal of establishing a girls’ school in Hokkaido and developing its human resources (see Image 10).

The five girls traveled to the US together with the Iwakura Mission. Living with Charles and Adeline LANMAN(Charles was a secretary to the Japanese legation) in Georgetown just outside of Washington, DC, TSUDA received her primary and middle school education in the area and grew up immersed in the American way of life.

At the end of 1882, TSUDA returned to Japan. In 1885, at the recommendation of ITŌ  Hirobumi, TSUDA was hired as an assistant professor at the government-run Peeresses’ School (Kazoku Jogakkō), and in 1886 she was promoted to professor. In 1889, she once again went to the US for study, this time to receive her higher education. There, she studied for three years at Bryn Mawr College in the Philadelphia suburbs, majoring in biology.

As an academic expert in women’s education, in 1898 TSUDA attended the General Federation of Women’s Clubs’ Convention in Denver, Colorado, as one of Japan’s representatives (see Image 12). She went on inspection tour focused on the US system for women’s education, and in speech to the convention spoke of the need for women’s education in Japan. After the convention, TSUDA accepted an invitation from influential women supporters including the wife of the Archbishop of Canterbury to visit the United Kingdom to inspect its education system (Item: “Amerika-koku Fujin Kurabu Rengōkai Taikai kaisetsu ni tsuki TSUDA Umeko hoka ichimei sanretsu ikken: Fu-Eikoku e ōshō no ken“ (Ref. B07080279500, image 26).  In 1900 after having returned to Japan, TSUDA resigned her professorships at the Peeresses’ School and at the Teachers’ College for Women. She then founded Joshi Eigaku Juku (today’s TSUDA University), a private institution, and served as its president (see Image 13).

As articles from the San Francisco-based, Japanese-language newspaper Shin Sekai show (see Table 1), even while presiding over her school TSUDA continued to travel to the US to observe the business of women’s education and interact with relevant organizations. And, it may be noted, when she passed away on August 16, 1929, that newspaper, too, ran an obituary for TSUDA (see Image 14).

 

5. The New 1,000 Yen Note: KITASATO Shibasaburō

KITASATO Shibasaburō (1853–1931), whose portrait has been selected for the new 1,000-yen note (see Image 15), left behind a distinguished record in the research and prevention of infectious diseases, and is known as “the father of modern Japanese medicine.” Here, I will focus mainly on records related to the measures undertaken to prevent infectious diseases carried out during the time when KITASATO was president of the Institute for Infectious Diseases.

KITASATO graduated from the University of Tokyo School the Faculty of Medicine in 1883. Following this, he went to Germany to study from 1886 to 1892. His studies there were funded by the Japanese government, with the goal of establishing a public health system that would no longer be dependent on hired foreign experts (oyatoi gaikokujin) (Item: “Eiseigaku kōshū no tame ryūgakusei Ōshū e haken no gi,” Ref. A07062776600). During his studies abroad, in 1889 KITASATO succeeded in cultivating a pure tetanus bacillus culture, which led him to discover an antitoxin made up of antibodies against the bacterium and also to come up with the idea for serum treatment.

After returning to Japan, KITASATO resumed his post at the Home Ministry. In 1892, he founded the private Institute for Infectious Diseases (which in 1899 became the National Institute for Infectious Diseases [only indirectly related to the present-day NIID]) and served as its director. In 1894, by order of the government he traveled to Hong Kong to investigate the causes of bubonic plague (see Image 16), and there he discovered the bacterium that causes the disease.

In 1895, KITASATO took part in a meeting to decide on technical policy for a quarantine program conducted by the Temporary Army Quarantine Department (Rinji Rikugun Ken’ekibu) for returned soldiers who had served during the First Sino-Japanese War. As a way to disinfect large amount of clothing from the many infected officers and men in a short period of time, he carried out performance tests of a “steam sterilization boiler.” In these tests, KITASATO proved that the steam sterilization method at 100ºC for 30 minutes was effective at half the time of previous approaches (see Image 17).

Upon the outbreak of the Russo-Japanese War in February 1904, KITASATO submitted to the Home Minister a proposal titled, “Shussei-guntai ni yobō sesshu shikō no kengi” [Petition and proposition about medical affairs and sanitation for frontline forces]” (see Image 18). In his proposal, KITASATO stressed the importance of preventive vaccinations for soldiers going to the front. He wrote, “In wars like the Franco-Prussian War and Sino-Japanese War, more lives were lost due to contagious diseases than to enemy shells. Not only does the spread of contagious diseases among troops on the frontlines impair their fighting abilities, but when they return home they bring the germs back into the country that cause the misery of an outbreak.” The proposal—which was passed along from the Home Minister to the Navy Minister—is filled with the sense of mission of wanting to protect the lives of his fellow Japanese, and set forth fundamental measures for dealing with infectious diseases.

From 1910 through 1911 as the Qing dynasty was coming to an end, pneumonic plague swept across Manchuria. At the request of Prime Minister KATSURA Tarō, KITASATO traveled to Manchuria and made observations around the region (“KITASATO-hakase to-Man,” Item: Shin Sekai 1911.02.25,” Ref. J21020325800, image 6). In response to the wretched spectacle of the plague in Manchuria, in spring 1911 the Qing authorities convened in Mukden (present-day Shenyang) an International Plague Conference with the goal of controlling the disease. They invited medical scholars from the world’s leading countries, including Japan, Russia, the US, the UK, Germany, France, Italy, Holland, Austria, and Mexico. As a delegate of the conference, KITASATO submitted a resolution for measures to control the plague passed at the conference to the Qing regent (see Image 19).

In 1914, KITASATO resigned as director of the National Institute of Infectious Diseases. However, he continued to make contributions in a variety of fields through educational activities and in public health administration. These efforts included founding the KITASATO Institute (today a part of KITASATO University), establishing the Keio University School of Medicine, and creating the Japan Medical Association. KITASATO passed away on June 13, 1931, and his accomplishments were recognized posthumously by granting him the Order of the Rising Sun, 1st Class, Grand Cordon (see Image 20).

 

6. Conclusion

In this article, to commemorate the issuance of the new banknotes, I have used records from the National Archives of Japan, the Diplomatic Archives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, National Institute for Defense Studies at the Ministry of Defense, and Stanford University’s Hoover Institution that are available through JACAR to introduce you to SHIBUSAWA Eiichi, TSUDA Umeko, and KITASATO Shibasaburō—the three persons whose portraits have been chosen for those banknotes. I would be delighted if it gives you the chance to look back on some of their achievements.

 

Bibliography

• • KAKU Kōzō. Shihei no Nihon-shi [The history of banknotes in Japan]. Kadokawa, 2019.
  • NOMURA Setsuzō. Densenbyō to tatakatta isai Kitasato Shibasaburō to Gotō Shinpei: Nihon no igaku, kōshūeisei to futari no kizuna [Kitasato Shibasaburō to Gotō Shinpei, the remarkable men who combated infectious diseases: The ties between these two and Japanese medicine and public health]. 22nd Century Art, 2023.
  • TSUMAGARI Yūji. “Ishii Fudeko to 1898 [Meiji 31]-nen Bankoku Fujin Kurabu Taikai” [Ishii Fudeko and the 1898 General Federation of Women’s Clubs’ Convention ]. Kōchi Joshi Daigaku Kiyō [Bulletin of Kochi Women’s University], Series of Faculty of Social Welfare no. 49, March 25, 2000, pp. 1–8.
  • UEMURA Takashi. Shihei shōzō no rekishi [A history of banknote portraits]. Tokyo Bijutsu, 1989.
  • UEMURA Takashi. Shihei shōzō no kin-gendaishi [A modern and contemporary history of banknote portraits]. Yoshikawa Kōbunkan, 2015.
  • YOSHITAKE Nobuhito. “Nōberu-shō no kokusai seijigaku — Nōberu-heiwashō to Nihon: Dai-ni-ji sekai taisen-mae no Nihonjin suisensha” [The international politics of the Nobel Prize—the Nobel Peace Prize and Japan: Japanese candidates from pre-World War II]. Chiiki seisaku kenkyū. Society of Regional Policy, Takasaki City University of Economics. Vol. 13, No. 2-3, January 2012, pp. 1–9.

 

MIZOI Satoshi, Researcher, Japan Center for Asian Historical Records