Registered: December 2004
No. 380 —38.2 x 54.3 cm. Watercolour and Ink.
What the text says:
Coal hewers mine the coal and the other member of the pair dragged the coal out with the twinroped human-hauled box, up to “Kanekata” (horizontal drive). Then coal was transfered by hand into coal skips for transportation to mine entrance. Text upper left: Colliery in the Mid Meiji.
Children were able to work at collieries from the age 7 or 8. They went down the mine with their
own lanterns in hand. His father is “Sakiyama” (one of a pair), elder sister/brother act as 2
“Atoyama” (pair helpers), and then the young boy works as the 4th force. So, you would see two
children with 4 eyes, 4 arms, 4 feet together play the role of one full-fledged miner.
Husband and Wife, Parent and a child, Brother/Sister with another brothers/sisters, all work in pairs. A pair work produces about 2.5 tonnes; 5 or 6 Coal boxes/day from “Teisotan” ( a thin coal seam).