Discover Japan – Sapporo Winter Olympics 1972
Original B1 Poster | 72 x 103 cm | Offset Print | Hokkaido, Japan
This original B1-size poster was produced in 1972 to promote travel to Hokkaido during the Sapporo Winter Olympics, the first Winter Games ever held in Asia. Issued by the Japanese National Railways as part of the iconic "Discover Japan" campaign, the poster captures the winter magic of Sapporo with a dramatic nighttime scene: a towering ice sculpture carved with “1972,” a golden Buddhist statue, and the official Olympic torch monument bearing the Sapporo '72 emblem and Olympic rings.
Combining traditional Japanese symbolism with the sleek, modern branding of the Olympic movement, this poster was part of Japan’s effort to showcase its cultural and natural beauty to both domestic and international audiences during a defining postwar moment.
Key Details:
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Event: Sapporo Winter Olympics – 1972
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Date: February 3–13, 1972
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Size: B1 (72 x 103 cm)
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Medium: Offset Lithograph
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Publisher: Japanese National Railways (日本国有鉄道)
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Design Style: Late Showa-era travel campaign, Olympic modernism
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Campaign: Discover Japan
Rarity & Significance:
A rare surviving piece of Olympic and Japanese graphic design history, this poster holds particular significance for collectors of:
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Vintage Japanese travel advertising
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Olympic memorabilia
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Showa-era national branding campaigns
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Cold War-era cultural diplomacy
Please refer to the imagery (both front and back) as this is the exact poster that is for sale.
It is not a reproduction or a reprint.
Certificate of Authenticity included.