Shimane Museum of Ancient Izumo

Shimane Museum of Ancient Izumo 島根県立古代出雲歴史博物館

Opened in 2007, this new 9,000 square meter museum, located next to the Izumo Taisha Grand Shrine, is well worth a visit. Shimane Museum of Ancient Izumo

With the explosion of archaeological work done in Japan in the last 50 years, our understanding of ancient Japan has grown tremendously, and the scale and importance of the ancient civilization centered on the Izumo area has begun to be understood. The museum showcases some of the major finds in the Izumo area of recent years. Interior of the museum

Ancient Myths

There are galleries for temporary exhibitions, an exhibition including animated movies suitable for kids on Izumo's ancient myths, a gallery on daily life in Izumo from ancient times to the present that includes materials relating to Lafcadio Hearn, well-landscaped grounds that include replicas of Haniwa, but the heart of the museum is the permanent collection divided into several sections. Glass walls and water feature of the museum

Izumo Taisha Section

There is a section on the grand shrine of Izumo Taisha. In the tenth century a visiting monk from Kyoto wrote in his journal that the shrine at Izumo rose to a height of more than 50 meters. Since then this had been mostly dismissed as an exaggeration, until excavation in 2000 unearthed the base of three huge pillars bound together with iron straps. It was probably the tallest wooden building in the world, and the foyer of the museum has the excavated pillars on display. There are also models of how the shrine may have looked back then, as well as many other materials illustrating the shrine history. Museum exhibit, Shimane Museum of Ancient Izumo

Izumo Fudoki

Next is a section on the Izumo Fudoki. Fudoki were gazeteers compiled at the request of the new "central" government in the early eighth century, and as such are a mine of historical materials. Fudoki were compiled for all of Japan's provinces, but only the Izumo Fudoki has survived intact. The section on bronze goods, swords, and ancient ceremonial objects contains the centre-piece of the whole museum. This is all 358 bronze swords that were excavated at the nearby Kojindani site. Bronze ceremonial swords were buried for ritual and religious reasons.

Bronze Swords

Before the Kojindani discovery, only 355 of these swords had been discovered in all of Japan. So when more than that were discovered at one single site in Izumo, a rethinking of Izumo's importance in ancient Japan was necessary. The display consists of one huge wall displaying all the swords. Above them replicas of the swords as they would have appeared new. Other items in the museum that I found particularly interesting were, an iron sword from the early 5th Century inscribed with kanji, making it the earliest known example of writing in Japan. I was also interested in some gold and silver jewelry recovered from a kofun (tomb) near Matsue. These are the only gold and silver grave goods in all of Japan, and one of "Himiko's" mirrors, a gift from the Emperor of China to the ancient 3rd century Japanese kingdom of Yamatai. This further confuses the long-standing debate among historians as to exactly where Yamatai was.

Access - Getting There

Shimane Museum of Ancient Izumo 99-4 Kizuki-higashi Taisha-cho Izumo City Shimane 699-0701 Tel: 0853 53 8600 Open from 9 am - 6 pm March to October and 9 am - 5 pm November to February. Admission is 610 yen for adults to the permanent exhibition; 410 yen for university students and 200 yen for school students. There is a 50% discount for foreigners. Free digital audio guides are available. The museum is closed on the third Tuesday of every month *If the third Tuesday is a national holiday, the museum will close on the next day. The museum is located right next to Izumo Taisha shrine. It can be reached by the Ichibata Railway from either Matsue or Izumo City. Alternatively take an Ichibata bus from Izumo Station to Seimon-mae bus stop (25 minutes). Nearby is the worthwhile Tezen Museum with exhibits of local Izumo arts and crafts. Happi Coats Japanese For Busy People