Portrait of the Meiji Emperor,

1872

The Meiji emperor’s era of rule is distinguished as a period of transition in Japan from an isolated feudal society, ruled by the military Tokugawa shogunate, to its modern-day form. The Meiji Restoration began with a political revolution in 1868 that returned the country to direct imperial rule under emperor Mutsuhito. Major political, economic, and social reforms were accompanied by an introduction of Western modern art. Photography captured the changing customs of the country as it opened up to Western influences for the first time. Uchida was the only photographer granted a sitting photograph with the Emperor Meiji, who was considered a deity and rarely seen in public. In this image, which became the emperor’s official imperial portrait, the Western military uniform has been hand painted with gold accents. The image signals the modernization of Japan, particularly the rapid growth and prowess of the army and navy.