Gotoh Museum
Encyclopedia
The is a private museum in the Kaminoge
Kami-noge Station
is a train station located in Setagaya, Tokyo, Japan.-Station layout:Some express trains to Oimachi pass local ones here during the rush-hour. For this purpose the station is equipped with a third track lacking a platform...

 district of Setagaya
Setagaya, Tokyo
is one of the 23 special wards of Tokyo in Japan. It is also the name of a neighborhood within the ward. The ward calls itself the City of Setagaya in English...

 on the southwest periphery of Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...

. It was opened in 1960, displaying the private collection of Keita Gotō
Keita Goto (industrialist)
was a Japanese businessman who built the Tokyu Group into one of the leading corporate groups in Japan.- Education and civil service career :Gotō was born in 1883 as Keita Kobayashi in the village of Aoki in Nagano Prefecture. After graduating from high school in the nearby city of Matsumoto, he...

, chairman of the Tokyu Group
Tokyu Group
The of companies centers on the Tokyu Corporation railway company, which links Tokyo and its suburbs. Many companies in the group are designed to enhance the value of the Tokyu rail network. In addition to the railroad system, the group includes other companies in transportation, real-estate,...

. Today's collection is centered around the original selection of classical Japanese and Chinese art such as paintings, writings, crafts and archaeological objects completed by a small selection of Korean arts. It features several objects designated as National Treasures
National treasures of Japan
National Treasures are the most precious of Japan's Tangible Cultural Properties, as determined and designated by the Agency for Cultural Affairs...

 or Important Cultural Properties
Important Cultural Properties of Japan
The term is often shortened into just are items officially already classified as Tangible Cultural Properties of Japan by the Japanese Agency for Cultural Affairs and judged to be of particular importance to the Japanese people....

. The exhibition changes several times per year with special openings in spring and fall. A garden with a tea house, ponds and small Buddhist statues is attached to the museum.

The museum will be closed from December 2010 to November 2012 for major renovations.

Genji Monogatari Emaki

One of the most important items housed in the museum are sections of the oldest extant illustrated handscroll of The Tale of Genji
The Tale of Genji
is a classic work of Japanese literature attributed to the Japanese noblewoman Murasaki Shikibu in the early 11th century, around the peak of the Heian period. It is sometimes called the world's first novel, the first modern novel, the first psychological novel or the first novel still to be...

dating to the 12th century. This Genji Monogatari Emaki
Genji Monogatari Emaki
The , also called The Tale of Genji Scroll, is a pictorial hand scroll of the Japanese literature piece The Tale of Genji. The word emaki comes from the word "emakimono" meaning "picture scrolls".-History:...

 used to be the property of the Hachisuka family. The fragments cover chapters 38 , 39 and 40 of the novel.
  • The Bell Cricket 1: one illustration (third princess with maid and hem of Genji's robe), two pages of text
  • The Bell Cricket 2: one illustration (conversation between Reizei and Genji at an informal concert), two pages of text
  • Evening Mist: one illustration (jealous Kumoi no kari is trying to snatch away a letter from her husband Yūgiri who is Genji's son), two pages of text
  • Rites: one illustration (exchange of poems between Genji, the dying Murasaki and Empress Akashi, her adapted daughter), three pages of text


The fragments are very fragile and are listed as National Treasure
National treasures of Japan
National Treasures are the most precious of Japan's Tangible Cultural Properties, as determined and designated by the Agency for Cultural Affairs...

. They are displayed in the Gotoh Museum every year for about a week in April/May around the Golden Week holidays. More scrolls are housed in the Tokugawa Art Museum in Nagoya.

Murasaki Shikibu Diary Emaki

Another important item and National Treasure of the museum collection are 13th century fragments of a handscroll of the The Murasaki Shikibu Diary
The Murasaki Shikibu Diary
The Diary of Lady Murasaki records the daily life of the Heian era lady-in-waiting and writer, Lady Murasaki Shikibu, author of The Tale of Genji...

 with illustrations. Three illustrations and three pages of text are housed in the museum. The items are displayed in the Gotoh Museum every year for about a week in autumn. More fragments are housed in the Fujita Art Museum
Fujita Art Museum
The is one of the largest private collections in the Kansai region. The collection was assembled by Fujita Denzaburō and his descendants. It was installed in a storehouse on the family property in Osaka....

 in Osaka
Osaka
is a city in the Kansai region of Japan's main island of Honshu, a designated city under the Local Autonomy Law, the capital city of Osaka Prefecture and also the biggest part of Keihanshin area, which is represented by three major cities of Japan, Kyoto, Osaka and Kobe...

.

See also

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