Yoshiwara was a famous Akasen district (red-light district) in Edo, present-day Tokyo, Japan. The courtesans would consist of yujo (women of pleasure/prostitutes), kamuro (young female students), shinzo (senior female students), hashi-joro (lower-ranking courtesans), koshi-joro (high-ranking courtesans), tayu (higher-ranking courtesans), oiran (highest ranking courtesans). The unfortunate women in caged brothels represented the lowest rank of prostitute in Yoshiwara and other red light areas.

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Keywords: 19th, asia, asian, brothel, business, century, edo, fashion, floating, human, japan, japanese, kimono, meiji, photograph, prostitute, sex, sexuality, style, tokyo, water, woman, women, world, yoshiwara