Hinako Sugiura, an author of books on Tokyo culture in the Edo Period, died Friday of hypopharynx cancer at a hospital in Kashiwa, Chiba Prefecture, publisher Shinchosha Co. said Monday. She was 46.
Sugiura, whose real name was Junko Suzuki, drew cartoons and wrote essays on manners and culture in Edo, the former name of Tokyo, during the period stretching from 1600 to 1867.
A Tokyo native, Sugiura debuted as a cartoonist in 1980, depicting manners and cultures of the period. She won an award for her cartoon "Gassou" ("Joint Burial") from the Japan Cartoonists Association in 1984, and an award for another cartoon from publisher Bungeishunju Ltd. in 1988.
She quit drawing cartoons in 1993 and devoted herself to the study of Edo culture, writing essays on the topic.
Kyodo News