Kaitai Shinsho
is a medical text translated into Japanese during the Edo period. It was written by Sugita Genpaku, and was published by Suharaya Ichibee () in 1774, the third year of An'ei. The body comprises four volumes, the illustrations, one. The contents are written kanbun-style. It is based on the Dutch-language translation , often known in Japan as , of Johann Adam Kulmus’ Latin , published before 1722 (exact year is unknown) in Gdańsk, Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. As a full-blown translation from a Western language, it was the first of its kind in Japan. Background On 4 March 1771, the eighth year of Meiwa, the students of Rangaku medicine Sugita Genpaku, Maeno Ryōtaku, Nakagawa Jun'an, et al., by studying performing autopsies on criminals executed at the Kozukappara execution grounds (now, there is a possibility that Katsuragawa Hoshū was at this facility as well, but from the description in , it seems more likely that he was not). Both Sugita and Maeno had the book Ontleedkundige Tafelen, imported from Holland. Sugita, marveling at the accuracy of the work while comparing it by eye with his autopsies, proposed to Maeno that it be translated. For some time, Sugita had a desire to translate something from Dutch; now he would get approval for this. He met with Maeno the very next day (5 March) and began translation. The one who recommended Kaitai Shinsho to the shōgun was Katsuragawa Hosan. At first, Sugita and Nakagawa could not actually read Dutch; even with Maeno who could, their Dutch vocabulary was inadequate. It would have been difficult for them to consult with the Dutch translations and translators (Tsūji) in Nagasaki, and naturally there were no dictionaries at the time. A translation from any other Western language would have been out of the question, as the government of the time did not allow contact with any other Western nation. Therefore, in a process comparable to cryptanalysis, they progressed with translation work. In his later years, Sugita would detail the process in Rangaku Koto Hajime. In the second year of An'ei (1773), as they arrived at a translation goal, in order to ascertain society's and above all the authorities' response, they released the , a five-page flyer. In 1774, Kaitai Shinsho was published. Influences Maeno Ryōtaku was at the center of the translation work, but his name is only mentioned in the dedication written by the famous interpreter Yoshio Kōsaku. By one account, Maeno was on the way to study at Nagasaki; when he prayed at a Tenman-gū for the fulfillment of his studies, he vowed not to study in order to raise his own name, so he abstained from submitting it. By another account, since he knew that the completed works were not completely perfect, the academic Maeno could not submit his name in good conscience. Sugita Genpaku said, "I am sickly and numbered in years as well. I do not know when I will die." While he knew the translation was imperfect in places, he rushed to publish.