Thus the birth of Hentai... and doujinshi, apparently.
(This is actually a joke among me and a few of my sources, it's not meant to be taken seriously.)

but i have to agree with you grand zero :D

Checking the article in Wiki
Those are journalists under the Imperial Navy. They brought the book to Japan. Grandpa Isoroku heard about their smuggling story later.

The big case happened after the translated version is published in 1950. It goes to the supreme court.
But since this is after war, I wonder if the sexual content itself would qualify as socially unacceptable in pre-WW2 Japan.

BTW, other than stuffs that are clearly against the law such as drugs or human trafficking, military and diplomatic envoys are the only way to get through border check ? Or is there any other route available ?

grand_zero said:

Thus the birth of Hentai... and doujinshi, apparently.
(This is actually a joke among me and a few of my sources, it's not meant to be taken seriously.)

If you think this was the birth of hentai you haven't studied Japanese art history very well.

seikenshin said:

If you think this was the birth of hentai you haven't studied Japanese art history very well.

He said it's a joke. I think by now most of us are aware of a certain ukiyo-e which depicts a lady and certain sea creatures.

Seika said:

The big case happened after the translated version is published in 1950. It goes to the supreme court.
But since this is after war, I wonder if the sexual content itself would qualify as socially unacceptable in pre-WW2 Japan.

Printing and distribution of all forms of sexual material has been something controlled by the Japanese government since the early Tokugawa era, so... Lady Chatterley's Lover would probably have been banned at any point for the last four centuries.