is an open-air architectural museum/theme park in
Inuyama, near
Nagoya
is the largest city in the Chūbu region, the fourth-most populous city and third most populous urban area in Japan, with a population of 2.3million in 2020. Located on the Pacific coast in central Honshu, it is the capital and the most pop ...
in
Aichi
is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshū. Aichi Prefecture has a population of 7,552,873 () and a geographic area of with a population density of . Aichi Prefecture borders Mie Prefecture to the west, Gifu Prefectu ...
prefecture,
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
. It was opened on March 18, 1965. The museum preserves historic buildings from Japan's
Meiji (1867–1912),
Taishō (1912–1926), and early
Shōwa (1926–1947) periods. Over 60 historical buildings have been moved and reconstructed onto of rolling hills alongside
Lake Iruka. The most noteworthy building there is the reconstructed main entrance and lobby of
Frank Lloyd Wright
Frank Lloyd Wright (June 8, 1867 – April 9, 1959) was an American architect, designer, writer, and educator. He designed more than 1,000 structures over a creative period of 70 years. Wright played a key role in the architectural movements o ...
's landmark
Imperial Hotel Imperial Hotel or Hotel Imperial may refer to:
Hotels Australia
* Imperial Hotel, Ravenswood, Queensland
* Imperial Hotel, York, Western Australia
Austria
* Hotel Imperial, Vienna
India
* The Imperial, New Delhi
Ireland
* Imperial Hotel, D ...
, which originally stood in Tokyo from 1923 to 1967, when the main structure was demolished to make way for a new, larger version of the hotel.
History
![Tetsudokyoku](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9d/Tetsudokyoku.jpg)
The Meiji era was a period of rapid change in Japan. After centuries of isolation, Japan began to incorporate ideas from the west, including building styles and construction techniques.
Meiji-mura was started by
Yoshirō Taniguchi
was a Japanese architect. He was born in the city of Kanazawa, Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan. He was a graduate of Tokyo University Department of Architecture and professor at Tokyo Institute of Technology from 1929 - 1965. As an architect, he crea ...
(谷口 吉郎 Taniguchi Yoshirō 1904–79), an architect, and
Motoo Tsuchikawa (土川元夫 Tsuchikawa Moto-o, 1903–74), then vice president and later president of
Nagoya Railroad
, referred to as , is a private railway company operating around Aichi Prefecture and Gifu Prefecture of Japan.
Some of the more famous trains operated by Meitetsu include the ''Panorama Car'' and the '' Panorama Car Super'', both of which off ...
(Meitetsu). While riding the Yamanote line in Tokyo, Taniguchi lamented the sight of the demolition of the
Rokumeikan
The was a large two-story building in Tokyo, completed in 1883, which became a controversial symbol of Westernisation in the Meiji period. Commissioned for the housing of foreign guests by the Foreign Minister Inoue Kaoru, it was designed by Brit ...
, a symbol of Meiji era architecture. He appealed to his college classmate Tsuchikawa to join him in working to preserve western style Meiji era buildings of cultural or historical importance. On July 16, 1962 they formed a foundation for this purpose, with Nagoya Railroad providing the funding. Meiji-mura was opened on March 18, 1965 on the banks of the Lake Iruka reservoir, operated under Nagoya Railroad with Taniguchi as museum director, with 15 buildings.
Meiji-mura's goal is to preserve these historic early examples of western architecture mixed with Japanese construction techniques and materials. Incidentally, many of the buildings were saved from demolition during the post World War II period, another time of transition and rapid progress in Japanese history.
Though it is still operated by Nagoya Railroad, a subsidiary company was created in 2003 to oversee it and nearby
Little World. Due to the recent financial declines with Nagoya Railroad the future of the park is in question. While renovations had been put on hold for a time, work on moving the Shibakawa Yashiki from Nishinomiya, Hyōgo was begun in January 2005.
Buildings
Notable buildings of historical or cultural importance including those of later eras are preserved, including a few Japanese style buildings. Eleven of the buildings are designated as Important Cultural Assets, and nearly all the rest are registered as tangible cultural assets. The museum includes buildings from Hawaii and Seattle in the United States, and also Brazil. A steam locomotive and street car, along with shuttle buses and horse-drawn carriages, provide transportation within the grounds. An operational historic post office is included among the 67 buildings (as of 2005). Though some buildings are somewhat empty, others have displays showing the history of the building and period, period furniture, and other displays.
The entrance and lobby of the Imperial Hotel was saved and moved from Tokyo between 1967 and 1985. Though only the entrance and lobby remain, it is the largest structure in Meiji Mura.
Other structures preserved at Meiji Mura include
Lafcadio Hearn
, born Patrick Lafcadio Hearn (; el, Πατρίκιος Λευκάδιος Χέρν, Patríkios Lefkádios Chérn, Irish language, Irish: Pádraig Lafcadio O'hEarain), was an Irish people, Irish-Greeks, Greek-Japanese people, Japanese writer, t ...
's
summer house
A summer house or summerhouse has traditionally referred to a building or shelter used for relaxation in warm weather. This would often take the form of a small, roofed building on the grounds of a larger one, but could also be built in a garden ...
from
Shizuoka
Shizuoka can refer to:
* Shizuoka Prefecture, a Japanese prefecture
* Shizuoka (city), the capital city of Shizuoka Prefecture
* Shizuoka Airport
* Shizuoka Domain, the name from 1868 to 1871 for Sunpu Domain, a predecessor of Shizuoka Prefecture
...
(1868), St. John's Church from
Kyoto
Kyoto (; Japanese: , ''Kyōto'' ), officially , is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in Japan. Located in the Kansai region on the island of Honshu, Kyoto forms a part of the Keihanshin metropolitan area along with Osaka and Kobe. , the ci ...
(1907) designed by
James McDonald Gardiner
James McDonald Gardiner (May 22, 1857 – November 25, 1925) was an American architect, lay Anglican church missionary and educator who lived and worked in Japan during the Meiji period.
Early life and education
Born May 22, 1857 in St. Louis, ...
and Kyoto's old St. Francis Xavier Catholic Cathedral (1890). The former cathedral is available to rent for weddings.
One of the traditional merchant houses that survived from Nagoya is the Tōmatsu House (東松家住宅, ''Tōmatsu-ka jūtaku''), which was constructed in 1901 in
Funairi-chō, Nagoya
Funairi-chō (船入町) is a historic neighbourhood located in the Nakamura ward of Nagoya, central Japan.
It was one of the merchant areas, located close to the Hori Canal and south of Nagoya Castle. The translation means a "ship entering town ...
. It survived the
bombing of Nagoya in World War II and was relocated to the museum in the 1970s. It has been designated by the government as an Important Cultural Property.
File:Kikunoyo.jpg, "Kikunoyo" Brewery
File:Hoheiheisha.jpg, Barrack, Sixth Infantry Regiment
File:Kitasato kenkyujo.jpg, Kitasato Institute
File:Chihayashogaku.jpg, Auditorium, Chihaya-Akasaka Primary School
File:Miejinjoshogaku.jpg, Mie Prefectural Normal School
File:Mikeprefecturetyousha.jpg, Mie Prefectural Office
File:Saigotsugumitihouse.jpg, Reception Hall of Marquis Tsugumichi Saigo
Tsugumichi is a masculine Japanese given name.
Possible writings
Tsugumichi can be written using different combinations of kanji characters. Here are some examples:
*次道, "next, way"
*次路, "next, route"
*次通, "next, pass through"
*嗣道 ...
House
File:Seiyohanekyokai.jpg, St. John's Church from Kyoto
File:Francis Xavier's Cathedral.jpg, St. Francis Xavier's Cathedral
File:Meijimurabunkazai16.JPG, Cabinet Library of Tokyo Imperial Palace
Image:Meijimurabunkazai21.JPG, Kureha-za Theater, built in 1868
Image:Meijimurabunkazai25.JPG, Japan Red Cross Society Central Hospital, built in 1890
File:Meijimurabunkazai7.JPG, Tōmatsu House from Funairi-chō, Nagoya, built in 1901
File:Zagyosou.jpg, "Zagyo-so," Villa of Prince Kimmochi Saionji
Prince was a Japanese politician and statesman who served as Prime Minister of Japan from 1906 to 1908 and from 1911 to 1912. He was elevated from marquis to prince in 1920. As the last surviving member of Japan's ''genrō,'' he was the most in ...
File:Kyotoshiden.jpg, Dynamically preserved Kyoto streetcar
Village chiefs
Famous Japanese actors have served as honorary village chief.
#
Musei Tokugawa
was a Japanese benshi, actor, raconteur, essayist, and radio and television personality. Musei (as he was called) first came to prominence as a benshi, a narrator of films during the silent era in Japan. He was celebrated for his restrained but e ...
(1965 ~ 1971)
#
Hisaya Morishige
was a Japanese actor and comedian. Born in Hirakata, Osaka, he graduated from Kitano Middle School (now Kitano High School), and attended Waseda University. He began his career as a stage actor, then became an announcer for NHK, working in ...
(1971 ~ 2004)
#
Shoichi Ozawa
was a Japanese actor, radio host, singer, and prominent researcher and expert on Japanese folk art. He also founded the Shabondama-za theater company.
Ozawa, who was born in Tokyo, graduated from Waseda University. He began acting after college, ...
(2004 ~ 2012)
#
Sawako Agawa
is a Japanese author and television personality.
Early life
Sawako Agawa was born in Tokyo on 1 November 1953. Her father is the novelist Hiroyuki Agawa; and her elder brother Naoyuki Agawa is also a writer. Naoyuki is a former diplomat who, ...
(2015 ~ present)
See also
*
Showa-mura
*
Taisho-mura
*
Treaty of Portsmouth
A treaty is a formal, legally binding written agreement between actors in international law. It is usually made by and between sovereign states, but can include international organizations, individuals, business entities, and other legal perso ...
, 1905 – see table used by Russian and Japanese negotiators
*
Edo-Tokyo Open Air Architectural Museum
The in Koganei Park, Tokyo, Japan, is a museum of historic Japanese buildings.
The park includes many buildings from the ordinary middle class Japanese experience to the homes of wealthy and powerful individuals such as former Prime Minister ...
*
Greenfield Village
The Henry Ford (also known as the Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation and Greenfield Village, and as the Edison Institute) is a history museum complex in the Detroit suburb of Dearborn, Michigan, United States. The museum collection conta ...
References
External links
Official Meiji Mura site
{{Authority control
Museums in Aichi Prefecture
Architecture museums in Japan
Open-air museums in Japan
Relocated buildings and structures
Rebuilt buildings and structures in Japan
Meitetsu Group
Buildings of the Meiji period
1965 establishments in Japan
Museums established in 1965