"What is Historical Manga?" Original story by Kan Takahama

I work as a manga artist.

Recently, I’ve been drawing nothing but historical manga,

so I consider myself a historical manga artist.

For example, here’s an old photo taken by Felice Beato around the end of the Edo period.

The photo shows a temple in Nagasaki called Daionji, including four visitors as well as a monk and samurai at the top of the stairs.

According to the photo’s caption, the monk is Ninkai Sanyo, a 16th generation monk.

However, I ended up finding more information on Daionji from a most unexpected source.
It was actually a letter left behind by one of my ancestors.

[Dialogue]
"What’s this?"
"Who could have written this?"

For a while, he apparently worked as an interpreter in Nagasaki, where he lodged at Daionji.

Daionji was a shuinchi (a daimyō-approved temple site) at which the spirit tablets of Tokugawa shoguns were enshrined. In other words, the temple had a connection to the shogunate.

Therefore, the temple also served as lodging for people working under the shogunate.

What this means is that—like my ancestor—the person in the photo might have worked as an interpreter for the magistrate's office.

a certain character apparently got going.

He was a young interpreter of around 23 to 25 years of age who was working for the Nagasaki magistrate’s office.

Given how well tanned he was, maybe his position required him to work outside.

White hakamas were also popular at the time, so he must have been quite a stylish guy.

Maybe he yearned for a beautiful town girl he met while going between Daionji and his workplace.

Maybe there were times when he fooled around with his buddies.

Or maybe he cried bitter tears of disappointment when work didn’t go how he hoped.

I resurrect obscure people who are all but forgotten on paper and on the monitor, and I rediscover lost places.

[Dialogue：Left]
"Hey, want some tea?"

[Dialogue：Right]
"Much obliged."

These are my jobs as a historical manga artist.

But there will come a time when I’m a part of history myself.

Even the people who know me will die, and then a century or two will pass.

But—even after I fade away from history—maybe there’s a chance of someone finding me...

If some future historian (perhaps even a manga artist), rediscovers me, that would be interesting.

[Dialogue]
"Huh? Is this manga?"
"I wonder who drew this."

I wonder what I would look like if I were reproduced.