Nagasaki: A Crossroads for People and Things

Nagasaki is a port city on the southwest coast of Kyushu in Japan. Starting in the 16th century, it became and remained an important site for the trade between East and West as well as artistic exchange. A closer look of Nagasaki’s development shows that in 1571, when administration was granted to the Portuguese, it became an international trade port. In 1641, it was the Dutch who used Dejima at Nagasaki as their base of operations, the place becoming an import-export site between Europe and Asia. From that time to the middle of the 19th century, only Chinese and the Dutch could go and conduct trade at Nagasaki, their homes, boats, and lifestyle becoming a feature of this port city.

All sorts of exotic birds and beasts made their way into the visual experiences and vocabulary of East Asian people at this time through sea trade, including elephants, camels, cassowaries, and parrots. Portuguese, Japanese, Chinese, and the Dutch joined together to bring this fascinating mixture of Eurasian confluence onto the world stage. For example, one of its products was Portuguese-inspired “Nambam lacquer,” which won the hearts of Europeans with fine workmanship, and “Japan” became synonymous for Europeans with lacquerware. European and Asian cooperation is even more evident in the realm of ceramics, an art product that took the world market by storm. The Dutch East India Company (insignia “VOC”) inaugurated a method of production known as “Dutch design, East Asian production,” which people still talk about.