Kaigara Danmen Zuan, “Inside wonders” pattern book, 1913....

Kaigara Danmen Zuan, “Inside wonders” pattern book, 1913....

Kaigara Danmen Zuan, “Inside wonders” pattern book, 1913....

Kaigara Danmen Zuan, “Inside wonders” pattern book, 1913....

Kaigara Danmen Zuan, “Inside wonders” pattern book, 1913....

Kaigara Danmen Zuan, “Inside wonders” pattern book, 1913....

Kaigara Danmen Zuan, “Inside wonders” pattern book, 1913. Published in Kyoto by Unsōdō, Japan. Via Cooper Hewitt / www.fulltable.com More to see: metmuseum.org

Yoichirō Hirase, a mollusk scientist, collected over 3500 seashells, 1000 of which were new discoveries. Hirase explains in the introduction on this book that he is not a designer or artist, but that he came up with the idea for this book while researching shells and cutting them at various angles. These “inside wonders” created interesting patterns which he further explored with illustrator Jun Nishikawa. 

©