Events
-
Limited timeThe Rise of Provincial Clans and the Development of a Unique Culture Until 6 May 2025
View Event Description & Conditions- Dates 16 December 2024, 9:30AM - 6 May 2025, 5:00PM
-
Event Details
Japanese Archaeology and Special Exhibition (Heiseikan) Japanese Archaeology Gallery
Local production of weapons, armor, and horse tack, which had originally been brought from Korea, began around the end of the 5th century. While gold and silver were often used in Korea, production in Japan was characterized by the extensive use of gilded bronze plates. From around the mid-6th century, unique metal objects such as large ornamental swords were also created. It is believed that these objects were distributed to provincial clans as proof of the Yamato Kingdom’s authority and as signs of an alliance.
28 result(s)
-
Limited timeMountain Worship and the Belief in the Decline of Buddhism Until 7 September 2025
View Event Description & Conditions- Dates 14 March 2025, 9:30AM - 7 September 2025, 5:00PM
-
Event Details
Japanese Archaeology and Special Exhibition (Heiseikan) Japanese Archaeology Gallery
From the late Nara (710–794) to the Heian (794–1192) period, priests who worshipped in the mountains began to appear throughout Japan. Believing that Shinto and Buddhism are essentially the same faith, and that Shinto gods are in fact Buddhist deities, they climbed mountains in search of sacred sites where they could worship the mountain gods. Sites on the peaks of Mt. Omine in Nara prefecture and Mt. Nantai in Tochigi prefecture are well-known examples, with excavations revealing various objects that these priests had left as offerings. This form of mountain worship eventually developed into Shugendo, a folk religion unique to Japan.
In the mid-Heian period, the belief in Buddhism’s decline also permeated society. The age of decline was thought to begin in the year 1052, leading people to associate reoccurring natural disasters and disturbances in society with this new age. In response, aristocrats and others living in the capital began creating sutra mounds throughout Japan. Aristocrats also believed in a prophecy that the Buddhist deity Maitreya would reappear 5,670,000,000 years in the future to save all beings. Transcribing sutra scrolls and preserving them in sutra mounds was most likely a way of praying for peace in this world and the next during these troubled times. This section features excavated objects connected with mountain worship and the belief in Buddhism’s decline.
-
Limited timeEgypt and Western Asia Until 25 May 2025
View Event Description & Conditions- Dates 14 March 2025, 9:30AM - 25 May 2025, 5:00PM
-
Event Details
Asian Gallery (Toyokan) Room 3
This section of the gallery features ancient art and artifacts from regions that gave rise to some of humanity’s earliest civilizations, including West Asia, Egypt, and the eastern Mediterranean. The Egyptian collection includes stoneware and earthenware objects from Pre-dynastic Egypt (circa 6000–3150 BC) as well as reliefs, mummies, and decorative art from Dynastic Egypt. Other objects frequently on view include Bronze Age burial goods from West Asia and the eastern Mediterranean, tablets bearing cuneiform script from Mesopotamia, and sculptures and pottery from ancient Iran.
-
Limited timeSutra Mounds: Time Capsules for 5,670,000,000 Years Until 7 September 2025
View Event Description & Conditions- Dates 14 March 2025, 9:30AM - 7 September 2025, 5:00PM
-
Event Details
Japanese Archaeology and Special Exhibition (Heiseikan) Japanese Archaeology Gallery
Sutra mounds were created from the Heian (794–1192) to the Edo (1603–1868) period for the purpose of preserving Buddhist sutra scrolls. The oldest example is a mound from which a cylinder containing sutras was excavated on Mt. Kinpu in Nara prefecture. It is believed that the Heian-period aristocrat Fujiwara no Michinaga dedicated this cylinder in 1007. The shape of a mound as well as the sutras and other objects it contains vary with its location and the time it was created. Sutras for these mounds were inscribed not only on paper but also on ceramic tiles, bronze plates, stones, shells, and other materials.
The creation of sutra mounds was motivated by the idea, which became widespread in the mid-Heian period, that Buddhist Law will decline 2,000 years after the Buddha’s death. A series of natural disasters and disturbances in society occurred around 1052, the year that this decline was thought to begin, leading people to draw connections. It was also believed that the Buddhist deity Maitreya would reappear in this world 5,670,000,000 years in the future and that Buddhism would prosper again. Sutra mounds were essentially time capsules meant to preserve sutra scrolls until the arrival of this age.
-
Limited timeObjects Unearthed from the Ueno Area Until 7 September 2025
View Event Description & Conditions- Dates 14 March 2025, 9:30AM - 7 September 2025, 5:00PM
-
Event Details
Japanese Archaeology and Special Exhibition (Heiseikan) Japanese Archaeology Gallery
The Ueno area, where Tokyo National Museum and Kan’eiji Temple stand today, began to thrive after Kan’eiji Temple became the official family temple of the shogun during the Edo period (1603–1868). Temple halls and monks’ quarters were built, and the surrounding town flourished. This section of the gallery presents objects from the Edo period that were unearthed from the Museum grounds and their surroundings, including Ueno Park.
-
Limited timeCeramics Until 1 June 2025
View Event Description & Conditions- Dates 14 March 2025, 9:30AM - 1 June 2025, 5:00PM
-
Event Details
Japanese Gallery (Honkan) Room 13
Early Japanese ceramics were heavily influenced by techniques and processes originating in China and Korea. Over time, a more diverse range of forms and styles came to be embraced in Japan. This increased diversity was driven by economic and political factors, including foreign trade and the changing preferences of disparate social classes.
Throughout Japanese history, people of different social classes—emperors, nobles, samurai, and townspeople like merchants—held political or economic power at different times. Potters responded by creating regionally distinct ceramics that met the needs and tastes of each set of clientele.
This gallery traces the history of Japanese ceramics from around the 12th century onwards, beginning with storage jars for daily use, which highlight the unique colors and textures of local clays. It continues with tea bowls and other utensils for the tea ceremony, a practice that greatly influenced ceramic production. The ceramic traditions of Kyoto are then presented, followed by porcelain made in Arita, and other works from regional kilns.
-
Limited timeConservation and Restoration Until 31 March 2025
View Event Description & Conditions- Dates 14 March 2025, 9:30AM - 31 March 2025, 5:00PM
-
Event Details
Japanese Gallery (Honkan) Room 17
Continuous conservation activities are required to effectively care for the objects in the Museum's collection. These activities ensure that works of art can be displayed while also preserving them for future generations. This gallery presents the Museum's conservation activities in three categories: environmental control during display and storage, assessment and analysis of each object’s condition of preservation, and conservation treatments for damaged objects.
-
Limited timeDecorative Arts | 16th–19th century Until 18 May 2025
View Event Description & Conditions- Dates 14 March 2025, 9:30AM - 18 May 2025, 5:00PM
-
Event Details
Japanese Gallery (Honkan) Room 8
From the late 16th century, changes in society helped artisans to develop the decorative arts. In the Azuchi–Momoyama period (1573–1603), samurai warlords united Japan after more than a century of fighting. The following Edo period (1603–1868) saw economic growth under a new samurai government, with merchants and other people gaining the wealth to buy art.
Potters succeeded in making Japan's first porcelain in the early 17th century. Methods for decorating porcelain and other ceramics then became more diverse, as shown by works with gold, silver, and color enamels. Meanwhile, textiles saw rapid technical advances. The loom was improved to make complex weaves possible, while dyeing became as detailed and expressive as painting.
Items like furniture and dining sets were coated with lacquer and decorated with metal powders, most often gold. Lacquer workers refined this technique, called maki–e, and combined it with new materials for more elaborate designs. Metalworkers also began using a wider variety of base metals and alloys, creating works with greater detail and precision.
-
Limited timeThe Art of Ukiyo–e | 17th–19th century Until 13 April 2025
View Event Description & Conditions- Dates 14 March 2025, 9:30AM - 13 April 2025, 5:00PM
-
Event Details
Japanese Gallery (Honkan) Room 10
Prints and paintings called ukiyo-e were the first genre of art enjoyed by common people on a large scale. Economic growth contributed to the creation of this genre in the 17th century. As living standards improved, common people developed an urban culture that was passionate about trends, fashion, and entertainment.
At first, ukiyo-e depicted the celebrities of the day, especially actors of the kabuki theater and courtesans of the pleasure quarters (the legal brothel district). The subject matter later expanded to include topics like seasonal festivals, travel spots, and landscapes.Techniques for making ukiyo-e also changed over time. Early ukiyo-e were painted by hand. Artisans later started carving images into blocks of wood and used these blocks to print ukiyo-e in large numbers. These black-and-white prints were much more affordable. As carving and printing techniques were refined, prints with a brilliant range of colors became possible.
-
Limited timeTea Ceremony Until 18 May 2025
View Event Description & Conditions- Dates 14 March 2025, 9:30AM - 18 May 2025, 5:00PM
-
Event Details
Japanese Gallery (Honkan) Room 4
Tea drinking and its role in society changed over time. In the 12th century, Zen monks introduced a new kind of tea drinking from China: green tea was ground into a powder and mixed with hot water. Monks drank this tea as a medicine and to stay awake during meditation.
Before long, the samurai also began to drink tea and competed for prizes in blind tasting competitions. In the 14th and 15th centuries, the elite samurai who ruled Japan focused on the aesthetics of tea drinking. They collected valuable Chinese works like paintings and tea bowls, displaying and using them during tea gatherings.
A century later, Sen no Rikyū (1522–91) established the foundations of the tea ceremony. When serving tea, he used valuable Chinese works together with simple utensils. He also stressed humility and the beauty of imperfection. Elite samurai practiced his style and its variations as a social, aesthetic, and spiritual pursuit.
-
Limited timeThe Arrival of Buddhism | 6th–8th century Until 13 April 2025
View Event Description & Conditions- Dates 14 March 2025, 9:30AM - 13 April 2025, 5:00PM
-
Event Details
Japanese Gallery (Honkan) Room 1
Japan's leaders transformed their society by adopting Buddhism and other foreign cultures and practices. Buddhism was founded by Gautama Buddha in ancient India around 500 BC. Later it spread throughout Asia and was introduced to Japan from the Korean Peninsula in the 6th century AD.
In the Asuka period (593–710), people from the Korean Peninsula brought advanced knowledge to Japan. They included monks, scholars, and artisans, who brought technology, scholarship, artistic traditions, and Buddhist teachings. Under the leadership of the emperor and powerful clans, Buddhism began to flourish as temples were built and sacred images created.
In the Nara period (710–794), Japan’s leaders emulated the Buddhist culture that was thriving in China. In the capital of Nara, the emperor oversaw the creation of a giant buddha sculpture at Tōdaiji Temple, the symbol of a state now unified under Buddhism. The sculptures, ritual tools, sacred texts, and other works on display illustrate these two periods of rapid change.