Namban art

Namban art refers to Japanese art from the 1500s-1600s influenced by Nanban trade with Europe. The word "namban" means literally "Southern barbarians", referring to those foreign sailors (Portuguese, Indian, African, Southeast Asian etc.) who arrived from the south at Japanese ports. It reflects one of the first known Asian terms for westernization. The Kobe City Museum, in Kobe, Japan, preserves a major collection of Namban art; in the West, the Museu Nacional de Arte Antiga in Lisbon, Portugal, has five namban screens (Port. biombos) on permanent exhibit.