부산대학교 도서관

Hizen wares, widely known today as 'Koimari', were manufactured mainly at Arita in the domain of Saga and had a high reputation. Between the mid-17th and mid-18th centuries they were exported in large quantities to Europe and to other parts of Asia through Dejima in Nagasaki by the Dutch East India Company. At that time Hizen-ware industry already at the manufacture stge, obtained funds and materials from the local porcelain traders. Porcelain traders in Imari and Arita used their resulting wealth to buy up land, becoming 'parasitic landlords', deepening the misery of the lower class peasants In the 1st year of Tempo, the domain, being in great financial difficulties, embarked on a policy of economic reform known as the 'Saga-han Tempo kaikaku'. The kernel of this policy, the 'Kinden' system involved the confiscation of land from the 'Parasitic Landlords', through the separation of agriculture and commerce. This system strengthened the productive base of agriculture and guaranteed a stable income from land taxes for the domain. It is commonly accepted that it was this system which enabled Saga to become an influential domain(yuhan) at the end of the Edo era. However, a close examination reveals that the system did not in fact lead to any significant increase in land taxes. This being so, what was the real aim of this policy? At the same time as the 'Kinden' system, Saga-han established a monopsony in porcelain. Up till now, the income from this monopsony has tended to be underestimated. The aim of this article is to examine the relationaship between the 'Kinden' system and the policy of industrial development, represented by the monopsony in porcelains in the political reforms carried out in the domain of Saga at the end of Edo era.