Kozaburo Tamamura

Two women greet each other with deep bows, as is practiced even today in formal settings. As is the case today, the person of inferior standing bows lower than her counterpart. This is a cleverly-staged studio photograph, as can be seen in the temporary straw matting and the painted background, placed next to a genuine bi-fold screen in order to indicate greater depth of field. This image is part of a series of photographs depicting daily customs, attributed to the Japanese photographer Tamamura Kōzaburō (1856-1923?).