1939 Kaneko Bird's-Eye View of Shanghai, China

A rare 1939 Japanese view of Shanghai issued by view maker Tsunemitsu Kaneko and published in Japanese controlled Shanghai. This map was issued at the height of the Second Sino-Japanese War, after the Battle of Shanghai I (1937) but before the abandonment of the Concessions (1941). It exemplifies the political tensions in Shanghai at an epic moment of east-west confrontation. Broadway Mansions (百老汇大厦), the massive and distinctive Art Deco development in Hongkou stands out prominently.

A Charming Personal Letter

The inside of the binder features a personal letter, translated here:

I hope this finds you well. Today, I found a very convenient map at a Japanese shop, so I thought I would use it to clarify where I’m staying. According to the map, it’s about 200 meters left from the Kabu Station, about three minutes away. My apartment is blessed and sacred. Although I get bored and stop working every day, I still take good care to return to my sincere apartment. When I went in October, I found the appearance of my town there. When you find this map, if you use the margin as a guide, it will be a beautiful thing. That is all.

Shanghai Under the Japanese

The Battle of Shanghai (1937) had put most of Shanghai firmly in Japanese hands, but the Concession areas remained a holdout and a haven of free trade, western ideals, and liberality in an increasingly locked-down city. This tenuous continued until December 8, 1941, the beginning of the Pacific War (WWII), when the Concessions were fully occupied by Japan.

East vs. West

The mapmaker has taken pains to label the main Japanese institutions and facilities in the largely Japanese and Chinese inhabited Hongkou Districts - as well as many of the important concession establishments along the Bund - a interesting choice that reflects the odd political time when the map was issued. By highlighting both areas, the mapmakers set up tension between Japanese and Western powers, at the same time establishing Japan as co-equal with the Concession nations. The tensions evident in this piece, were only exacerbated on the ground when, in 1941, all out Japanese aggression forced the abandonment of the Concessions entirely.

The Second Sino-Japanese War

The Second Sino-Japanese War was fought between the Kuomintang (KMT) led Republic of China and the Empire of Japan between 1937 and 1945. Generally, the war is considered to have started with the July 7, 1937 Marco Polo Bridge Incident. Following the Battle at Marco Polo Bridge, Japanese forces proceeded to capture both Beijing and its port city of Tianjin. Most believe that the incident was staged by the Japanese, who wanted greater influence in China and more control over the resource and labor-rich Manchuria. After five months of fighting, during which the Japanese were mostly victorious, the puppet state of Manchukuo was created. Puyi, the exiled last Qing Emperor of China, was installed as its ruler. Following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, discussions on the Second Sino-Japanese War are usually folded into the China-Burma-India Theater of World War II, which accounted for the majority of casualties during the Pacific War. The war ended in August 1945, following the American bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The Empire of Japan unconditionally surrendered to the Allies on September 2, 1945, bringing an end to the largest Asian war of the 20th century.

The Bund

The Bund is a waterfront area in central Shanghai. The name is derived from the old German term, 'bund,' meaning simply embankment or causeway. Many Asian colonial cities supported a Bund, but none became more famous or iconic than the Shanghai Bund. The area centers on the section of Zhongshan Road within the former Shanghai International Settlement, which runs along the western bank of the Huangpu River, facing Pudong, in the eastern part of Huangpu District. The Bund usually refers to the buildings and wharves on this section of the road, as well as some adjacent areas. It is one of the most famous tourist destinations in Shanghai and a designated historic zone.

Lining the Huangpu River, the Bund has dozens of historical buildings that once housed important banks and trading housing from the United Kingdom, France, United States, Italy, Russia, Germany, Japan, Netherlands and Belgium, as well as the consulates of Russia and Britain, a newspaper, the Shanghai Club and the Masonic Club. The Bund lies north of the old walled city of Shanghai and was initially a British settlement. A building boom at the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century led to the Bund becoming the major financial hub of East Asia. The former French Bund, east of the walled city was formerly more a working harbor.

Publication History and Census

This view was drawn by Tsunemitsu Kaneko and published in Shanghai by the Zhiseitang publishing house on October 3, 1939.