Contextualizing Nanban art in Nagasaki, The least Japanese city in Japan

Abstract

singular Nagasaki. This enclave was Iberian in origin and foundation, but later developed in Japanese mode until today. The secular isolation of the Japanese archipelago, called by many sakoku 鎖 国, which can be translated as "enchained country", implies that Western influences are not very deep or lasting and hence the originality of this Asian enclave. However, it is in Nanban art where the effervescence generated by the cultural encounter between East and West is reflected in artistic objects of great beauty that become revealing historical documents at the same time.