ABSTRACT
In Japan, as in China, there was no custom of the emperor's profile serving as a symbol of the nation or the government. In Europe, from the time of the Romans down to the present day, monarchs adorn currency, but the Japanese did not adopt this custom. Indeed, money was considered vulgar and defiling, and the god-emperor himself never handled it. The chrysanthemum seal on currency, postage stamps, savings bonds and other governmental instruments, on the bow of imperial warships, and above the entranceway to government buildings was emblematic of the emperor. The emperor's person was synonymous with Japan, but his face was not. Consequently, although the entire war was fought in the emperor's name, and every military and civilian sacrifice
2 and 3. PWR 11, 27 April 1938, inside front cover and p. 1. The first photograph of the emperor to appear in PWR was the formal portrait of him enshrined in government
offices and schools throughout the empire at the time of his enthronement in 1928. It appeared in PWR a few days before 29 April, a holiday honoring his birthday.3 The uniform he wears is that of the sovereign, largely unchanged since the time of his grandfather, Meiji, and patterned after the mid-nineteenth century military-inspired imperial dress then in fashion in Europe. The stiff portraiture also owes much to customs established in Meiji's day. The caption was something of a command: Offer prayers for myriad and unlimited blessings received through the benevolence of His Majesty.4
