Review

"Historians and other scholars of the Heian period will certainly want to add it to their shelves, but I warmly recommend it as a high-level introduction to theperiod for non-Japanese specialists as well." Karl Friday Jrnl of Japanese Studies

"The over seven-hundred pades of the text provides a wealth of information...This volume remains an indispensible resource for all students of Heian Japan." American Historial Review Dec 2001

Product Description

This volume provides the most comprehensive treatment of the Heian period, the golden age of the Japanese imperial court, in any Western language. From 794 to 1185, the Japanese emperor ruled over an elaborate government modeled on China's. Native Japanese elements blended with Chinese influences in religion and the courtly arts. The world's first novel was completed about 1020. In 1185 the elegant and peaceful world of the court was shattered by the struggle of the Taira and Minamoto warrior clans, who usurped real political power.