TSUMUGU exhibit highlights Kasuga Gongen genki-e, other Kyoto treasures

A special exhibition featuring government-designated national treasures and Imperial treasures owned by The Museum of Imperial Collections (Sannomaru Shozokan, Tokyo) associated with Kyoto, the ancient capital of Japan, is now running at the Kyoto National Museum.

The “National Treasures of Kyoto: Preserving the Cultural Heritage of Japan’s Ancient Capital” exhibit is organized by the Tsumugu Project — a joint effort by Japan’s Agency for Cultural Affairs, Imperial Household Agency and national daily The Yomiuri Shimbun (Tokyo) — in cooperation with other entities.

The special exhibition features 72 national treasures and 8 important cultural properties among other assets. It will also spotlight conservation efforts to preserve Japan’s cultural legacies.

A must-see work of art on display is the Kasuga Gongen genki-e or the Illustrated Chronicles of the Miracles of the Kasuga Deity handscrolls, a soon-to-be-designated national treasure owned by The Museum of Imperial Collections.

The special exhibition is held in conjunction with Nihonhaku (Japan Cultural Expo) and will last until Sept. 12, 2021.

Highlights:

From the Kyoto National Museum website:

The early works of Japanese art that have survived to the present day have passed through many hands over time. Among them, some of the most historically and artistically significant have been designated by the Japanese government as Important Cultural Properties or National Treasures. Officially recognizing these objects is one of the many steps that Japan has taken to protect and safeguard its cultural heritage so that it may continue to be preserved, researched, and exhibited into the future.

The people of Kyoto, a former capital dating back to the Heian period (794–1185), have long treasured cultural properties and played a vital role in promoting their preservation. This historic, quintessentially Japanese city embodies the scholarship and artistry prized so highly in this country. Fittingly, Kyoto has been selected to become the new site for the governmental headquarters of the Agency for Cultural Affairs in fiscal year 2022.

This exhibition is designed to help visitors better appreciate Japan’s historic and artistic heritage while detailing efforts to pass on these precious cultural objects to future generations. It shows the enduring allure and significance of Japanese art through the display of celebrated National Treasures, masterworks from the imperial collections, and other important objects associated with Kyoto. It also showcases various initiatives that have been indispensable to heritage protection and transmission—day-to-day research, disaster risk management measures, and conservation projects—beginning with the history of how these objects have been preserved in Japan.

(Photos by Kazuki Matsuura)

Official website of the exhibition (English):

• National Treasures of Kyoto