Here are photos of the Tokyo venue in Current.

At the entrance hall, you will be greeted by the large castle tower of Himeji-jo Castle. A full-size 190 cm tall and weighs 300 kg, specially exhibited items manufactured during the Heisei Great Repair (October 2009-March 2015) of the Himeji-jo Castle castle tower are displayed.

The exhibition consists of a tile modeling corner, a corner explaining how to make and roof tiles, and a video corner.

A full-size roof model is exhibited just after entering the exhibition hall. This section explains the differences between Nara period's roofing (right in the photo) and modern roofing (left in the photo).

[Ancient tiles modeling corner 1] From the 6th to the 8th centuries, the roof tiles and onigawara are displayed.

[Ancient tiles modeling corner 2] It is a full-size shibi of Toshodaiji Temple Kondo. Height is 119cm and weighs 200kg. I was surprised to think that it was installed at both ends of the large building in Nara period, where there was no machine such as cranes.

[The corner for making ancient tiles] In addition to the soil of the raw materials of the tiles, the original flat tiles, round tiles, and eaves tiles introduced from the continent are explained in an easy-to-understand manner using production tools, tiles, wall graphics, and images.

[Ancient roofing corner] This section introduces the process of how tiles are roofed. In front of the photo, it is a reproduction of the place where tiles are selected and provisionally lined before roofing on the roof. In the back, there are tools and templates used for tile roofing.

[Hands on Corner] This is a corner where you can pick up round tiles and flat tiles and roof tiles. Since it is full size, you can feel the weight of the tiles.

[Theatre Corner] A Mitsuzaku product featuring the work of tile craftsmen will be screened (about 21 to 24 minutes). You can also see valuable images of the repair of Showa Univ., the Great Buddha Hall of Todaiji Temple.

This is a unique exhibition where you can touch the skills and hearts of tile craftsmen who have made durable tiles that can withstand the millennium of wind and rain. Please come to the venue.

You can see the above exhibition contents in a series of videos. Please take a look here too.

※This exhibition will be toured at the Kobe venue (October 14 to December 3, 2017).

Photography / Shoma Kosai