Dated 100 years ago, prostitutes during the Meiji period were held in cages to attract customers in Yoshiwara, a center of brothels at that time. Girls as young as seven years old were sold to the brothels as sex workers to repay family debts.
The photos were taken between 1890 and 1900. The prostitutes were mainly from the countryside. Some lucky ones would be given training in etiquette such as Tea Art classes. However most had to stay in the brothels until some wealthy men paid off their debts and kept them as concubines, or they had enough money to buy back their own freedom.
The Nobel Prize Nominee Hideyo Noguchi, whose face is on the current 1000 yen banknote, was a big fan of brothels in Yoshiwara. He was reported to have spent a big sum of money for a night of pleasure. Men with different backgrounds were welcomed, while samurais had to remove their swords before getting in.
These brothels were called ‘harimise’, where prostitutes had to sit behind the bars and faced the main streets to let customers choose. Since 1903, sex workers were picked and chosen from their photos. And later in 1916, ‘harimise’ brothels were banned.
TOKYO (AP) — The engine for a new flagship small Japanese rocket burst into flames Tuesday during a combustion test, causing no injury or damage to the outside but destroying the engine and extensively damaging its test facility, officials said.
The second failure in a row raises concern about the progress of the Epsilon S rocket, whose debut flight is expected by March.
The test was conducted inside of the restricted area at Japan’s Tanegashima Space Center in southwestern Japan, and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency is investigating, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi told reporters.
An Epsilon project manager, Takayuki Imoto, told an online press conference from Tanegashina that the explosion occurred 49 seconds into the planned two-minute test, causing fire and scattering broken parts of the engine and damaging the facility.
“We are very sorry to have failed to live up to expectations,” Imoto said. He said the cause of the explosion was still under investigation. Project staff are trying to recover broken pieces to analyze and determine the cause as soon as possible to minimize the delay of the program, Imoto said.
He said repairs to the test facility would take several months.
Tuesday’s failure comes just over a year after the explosion last year of another Epsilon S engine during a test, according to JAXA.
Last year’s explosion was related to damage to the ignition systems of the engine and JAXA has since taken the necessary steps, the agency has said.
The triple-stage, 27-meter (88-foot) -long Epsilon S rocket is meant to improve Japan’s position in the growing satellite launch market by using solid fuel for more flexibility and mobility.
Japan’s much larger H3 rocket, failed in its debut launch in February 2023 but has since made three consecutive successful flights, most recently earlier in November.
“Development of flagship rockets such as Epsilon S is extremely important from the perspective of ensuring autonomy of Japan’s space development,” Hayashi told reporters. “JAXA will thoroughly investigate and take steps.”
In this photo provided by Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), smoke billows during a combustion test of an engine for new small Japanese rocket Epsilon S at Tanegashima Space Center, in Tanegashima, Kagoshima prefecture, southern Japan, Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024. (JAXA via AP)
In this photo provided by Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), smoke and fire are seen during a combustion test of an engine for new small Japanese rocket Epsilon S at Tanegashima Space Center, Kagoshima prefecture, southern Japan, Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024. (JAXA via AP)
In this photo provided by Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), smoke and fire are seen during a combustion test of an engine for new small Japanese rocket Epsilon S at Tanegashima Space Center, Kagoshima prefecture, southern Japan, Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024. (JAXA via AP)
Smoke and fire is seen during a combustion test of an engine for a new small Japanese rocket Epsilon S at Tanegashima Space Center, Kagoshima prefecture, southern Japan, Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024. (Kyodo News via AP)
Smoke billows during a combustion test of an engine for new small Japanese rocket Epsilon S at Tanegashima Space Center, Kagoshima prefecture, southern Japan, Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024. (Kyodo News via AP)
