This use of fumi-e continued until 1858 when it was formally abandoned.

To read a scientific analysis of historical paper-made fumi-e, see Montanari et al., "Kami Fumi-e: Japanese Paper Images to Be Trampled on—A Mystery Resolved" (2025), here: www.mdpi.com/2571-9408/8/...
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Unexpectedly, Hurd blames, in part, the proselytizing activities of the Jesuits who still placed importance in Christian icons.

Had they taught the "simple truth, without the use of images," Hurd implies the Japanese may have embraced Christianity, turning away from idolatry altogether. 5/6

This image of a horned buddha is placed at the crown of the page as an ornamental embellishment.

William Hurd's New Universal History (1780) copied the main engraving from an older work, but added this detail to help further contextualize the depicted activity as demonic. 4/6

Stories of this practice circulated in popular European literature, such as Jonathan Swift's Gulliver's Travels (1726) and Voltaire's Candide (1759).

For European Christians, such actions were perceived as a vile act of paganism, reflected in this engraving by a buddha with devil horns. 3/6

To ferret out “hidden Christians,” local villagers were forced to commit blasphemy by stepping on icons sacred to Christianity; such objects were called fumi-e, or "images for stomping."

If anyone refused, authorities turned to torture to procure apostasy, or they were killed. 2/6
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Church of the Transfiguration, The Little Church Around the Corner, Founded in 1848. An Episcopal church in Manhattan, New York City. (Sorry, the partial sign was too tempting!)

This figure is often treated as a visual representation of the Buddha Nature principle, namely, that all living beings have the innate potential to become buddhas.
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Traditionally, this figure is recognized as one of eighteen Awakened disciples of the Buddha, known as arhats, whose lore developed in medieval China.

Each arhat had his own distinctive features and this figure was known as "The Arhat Who Reveals His Heart." 4/5
#開心羅漢

The caption presents the icon as a "god of fertility," perhaps due to the curious head set inside the abdomen of the figure.

The placement of two young novice monks adds weight to the perception this icon was the object of prayer for hopeful parents. 3/5

Poujade de Ladevèze, the name we see under the front caption, was an early postcard publisher in Saigon who appears in directories by 1908.

Hoping to write home, French colonial soldiers were the primary clientele for postcards; this card was sent to France by an infantry member in 1911. 2/5

Unfortunately, The Breath of the Gods is now lost and production stills remain the best evidence for set design.

Popular Science ran a short article on the film, showing the construction of a new plaster buddha, is it the same one? Article viewable here: tinyurl.com/3jzhc3rj
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I believe not. The cracks in the plaster suggest wear and age, not the process of crafting (see also the broken curls of hair below).

Moreover, a very similar plaster buddha was created for Universal's The Breath of the Gods in 1920, before Hall was hired, starring Tsuru Aoki. 4/5

An inscription dates the photo to 1929. At this time Charles Hall was the art director for Universal, famous for his gothic aesthetic seen in the classic films Phantom of the Opera, Dracula, and Frankenstein.

Was this buddha statue a creation of Hall for a new Universal film? 3/5

When Carl Laemmle opened Universal City in 1915, it garnered such public acclaim he decided to make studio tours a permanent attraction.

Here we see a photograph (and duplicate) of the Universal backlot where a visitor sizes up one of the plaster buddhas on display. 2/5

The circular insert depicts an uncommon two-story pagoda known as the Many Treasures Pagoda (tahōtō) described in the Lotus Sutra.

This illustration shows the one built at Hachiman Shrine which was destroyed in 1870, several decades before this card was issued.
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The figure in the lower right corner is a crude rendering of a seated buddha.

Pronounced ethnic facial features and flowing silk garments were sometimes used to signify "authentic" Asian religions iconography. 4/5

Guérin-Boutron was a luxury Parisian chocolatier and early adopter of chromolithographed trade cards, creating this set of worldwide nations and cities in the early 1900s.

The printer, Vieillemard Fils & Cie., was a premier lithographer for major French trade card producers of the era. 3/5

The mystery figure on the left edge is a Chinese puppeteer; distinctions between China and Japan often dissolved under the umbrella of "the Orient."

Such imagery had circulated in Europe since the late 18th century through southern Chinese export paintings depicting popular Chinese occupations. 2/5

The central figure is representative of the Black Hat dance, sometimes seen as a celebration for the death of Langdarma, an enemy of Buddhism.

For an introductory overview of Tibetan cham, see Ellen Pearlman, Tibetan Sacred Dance: A Journey into the Religious and Folk Traditions.
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