A must-see for castle enthusiasts! A planner who loves castles talks about the charm of castle exhibitions!

This is a conversation with a cultural planner who was in charge of castle exhibitions in the past.
Four cultural planners talked about the "castle exhibition" in which he was involved.

<From left> Mr. Seiichiro Mori (Okayama Castle), Mr. Mima Inagaki (Hamamatsu Castle), Mr. Ena Taka (Sunpu Castle East Gate/Tatsumi Yagura), Mr. Masayuki Yoshida (Aizu Tsuruga Castle)

 

<Interlocutor Profile>

A. What do you think is "interesting about castle exhibits"?
The best part is that you can enjoy the exhibition and the castle experience at the same time. Being able to go back and forth between the world being exhibited and the human-scale world where you can put yourself in the place and look at it from the same perspective as the people at the time.

B. Tell us about your love for castles!
No matter what form it takes, the very fact that a castle once existed in that location is endearing. And whether or not there are castle towers, ruins, or relics, it's more fun to fantasize about things in a castle.

C. The future of castle exhibitions
After all, I would like to hold an exhibition that exposes the materials to the public as much as possible. This exhibition allows you to feel the historical changes in the area centered around the castle town, and the connection between the castle and the current town. I want to create an exhibit that increases interest in the area from the castle, just like when you look at the city from the castle tower.

A. What do you think is "interesting about castle exhibits"?
I think the unique characteristic of castles is that they are fortresses that remain in the same location as they were 400 or 500 years ago. The purpose is clear. That's why I think it's interesting that we can still imagine the position of the land at that time, and I think what makes the exhibition interesting is that we can create an entrance to that place.
Personally, I find it troublesome because there are too many warlords and too much information. Therefore, the hurdle is lower if you enter from the topography.
So, what I like about castle exhibits is the classic one, which uses projection mapping on topography to explain the origins of castles and their relationships with neighboring countries. It seems like map explanations are becoming more important in taiga dramas these days, but I want to explore that further.

B. Tell us about your love for castles!
I'm not a castle buff, so my favorite thing about castles is the view from the top. There are various approaches to the entrance of the castle. The view of the intricate stone walls of Kochi Castle and the curves of the stone walls of Kumamoto Castle.

C. The future of castle exhibitions
I'm concerned about territory. How to build a castle on vacant land, and what kind of trial and error goes into creating the blueprints? I think that even in the same land, people have different ways of marking territory. I would like to think about various ways to do this in a workshop and turn it into an exhibition. I think you can see the potential of the land and realize why this castle was built. Personally, I wanted to get through the castle game a bit before going to the castle exhibit.

A. What do you think is "interesting about castle exhibits"?
It is possible to make use of the historical location of a castle (actually, it is often a restored castle tower) itself for display. There are also many topics that give you a sense of human drama.

B. Tell us about your love for castles!
There are many castles all over Japan, and many of them make use of the natural topography of the area, and by knowing the background, you can understand them more deeply and understand them (= they are worth studying).
In mountain castles, it's fun to find traces of human activity (such as moats) in places that, if you look casually, might just look like a mountain slope.

C. The future of castle exhibitions
We tried this at Okayama Castle, but castle exhibits will be even more active than they are now, with exhibits that are not just from a male perspective (women and children) and exhibits that can be understood by foreigners as well, as an entry point for a wide range of people to become interested in the history of the region. I think it would be great if you could do it.
I would also like to work on an AR exhibit where you can see the view from the castle tower when it was built, and the battles from that time.

A. What do you think is "interesting about castle exhibits"?
Much of the content is about the rulers of the past, but you can also get a glimpse of the lifestyle and culture that continues in the region up to the present day. The castle and town are connected.

B. Tell us about your love for castles!
[How to enjoy my castle]
The view of the town from the castle ruins makes you think about the feelings of the castle owners at the time.

C. The future of castle exhibitions
Utilize the castle in a way that local people can easily visit and want to visit, such as by having a cafe or play area inside the castle.

 

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Thank you for your cooperation today.
I overheard, but it seems that you all have taken the Japanese Castle Test!

Inagaki
yes. Mr. Mori gave me a call, and the members participating today and a few others accepted it.

forest
We all took on the challenge from the second grade level, but it was quite difficult (lol).

bulk
It was right around the time the coronavirus pandemic hit.

Inagaki
When taking the exam, we all prepared for the exam by holding online study sessions and hearing from planners who are familiar with castles.

Inagaki
I would set aside an hour and a half and do it every week.
Rather than studying on my own, it was really nice to set a time together and concentrate on studying together! Even during the exam, I was able to remember what I had studied while talking with everyone.

 

First, I would like to hear about Aizu Tsuruga Castle, which Mr. Yoshida was in charge of.
You said that it was your job a long time ago, but how many years ago did you take on this role?

Yoshida
I started working on the renovations about 20 years ago. This year, the exhibit has been further renewed, so you can no longer see the exhibit I worked on, but I will talk about it while remembering what it was like back then.
The job I was in charge of at Aizu Tsuruga Castle was to renew the exhibits inside the castle tower.
Aizu Tsuruga Castle changed hands many times before the Edo period, so I needed to explain this fact.
From the basement to the top floor of the castle tower, the exhibition is structured so that it not only tells the story of the castle, but also the life and culture of the castle town. Inside the castle, you can learn about the history, folklore, and culture of Aizu. This is the configuration that can be used.
The current castle is a building whose exterior was restored using reinforced concrete in 1966. If the castle tower is original, there will be restrictions on displaying it because it is made of wood and is designated as a cultural property, but if it is made of reinforced concrete, there will be sufficient circulation and space for display. It was possible to configure.

Please tell me the highlights of the exhibits at Aizu Tsuruga Castle.

Yoshida
At that time, I was reading books such as ``Kyoto Shugoshu Shusho Shizuo'', ``Aizu Boshin War History'', and ``Records of a Meiji People'', but I was looking forward to seeing the exhibits unique to Aizu! With this in mind, I actively proposed the display of appropriate materials.

For example, this is an introduction to Emperor Komei's Goshinkan *1. This document clearly shows how much trust the Emperor had in Katamori Matsudaira at the time.

*1 Shinkan: A document handwritten by the emperor or retired emperor.

How did you finalize the materials to be exhibited?

Yoshida
The final decision was made after checking with the city, the foundation, and the supervising teacher.

Aizu Tsuruga Castle is still thriving today, but what was the site like right after the renovation?

Yoshida
Since it is a tourist destination, the castle is the highlight. It seems that tens of thousands of visitors visited during Golden Week immediately after the renovation, and it was very popular.

Next, let's talk about Mr. Inagaki, who was in charge of Hamamatsu Castle, which is connected to Ieyasu. Please tell us what you are proud of about the Hamamatsu Castle exhibit.

Inagaki
Hamamatsu Castle's pride is that its stone walls are the same as when the castle was built. The castle tower itself has been restored, but the stone walls from when Ieyasu was alive remain.

🄫Hamamatsu City

Inagaki
Hamamatsu Castle consists of exhibits in a small three-story castle tower, and the first layer is an area that tells the story of Ieyasu himself.
Centering on Ieyasu's "living doll" produced by Hamamatsu City, we exhibit video content and replicas of armor.

🄫Hamamatsu City

I toured it the other day and the dolls were really impressive.
It was completely different from the statue of Ieyasu that I knew, and I was surprised to see how delicate and dignified it was.

Inagaki
That's right. The original idea behind the exhibition was to get rid of the general image of Ieyasu as a ``raccoon father'' and promote the young and energetic Ieyasu.
So when I saw how Ieyasu was featured in a taiga drama, I thought, ``No way.'' The focus on adolescence is similar to the idea of the Hamamatsu Castle exhibit.
By the way, Hamamatsu Castle, like Aizu Tsuruga Castle, is a reconstructed castle tower made of reinforced concrete built after the war, so it was easy to renew the exhibits.

Please let us know your favorite points about exhibits other than dolls.

Inagaki
Since we are actually conducting excavations on site, it was also great to be able to display the results of Hamamatsu City's research on how far the stone walls had spread during the Ieyasu era.
There is also an exhibition area that utilizes an existing diorama created about 30 years ago.
This diorama uses projection mapping to express the expansion of the castle's territory and castle town from the Ieyasu era to the Edo era.
Thanks to the collection of drawings made at the time of production 30 years ago remaining, when I placed the projection mapping images on the diorama, I was surprised to find that the positions of the images and the model matched perfectly. It seems that the drawing was created during academic verification.
When manufacturing, fine adjustments are made on site to match the detailed dimensions, so it is rare for the dimensions of the final model to exactly match the drawings.
That's why I was so moved that they kept it in its final form. You can feel the meticulousness of the people who were involved in the production, including the topography and the way the stables were constructed.

What about the top floor?

Inagaki
The family crests of successive castle lords are displayed on the ceiling of the third floor of the top floor. By the way, Hamamatsu Castle is known as the castle of success, and it seems that the military commanders who served as the castle lords often took on executive positions in the shogunate after leaving the castle.

The East Gate and Tatsumi Yagura of Sunpu Castle, where Mr. Takashi was in charge of the exhibition planning, are also places connected to Ieyasu.

bulk
yes. Ieyasu lived in Shizuoka three times during his childhood, and during that time he built Sunpu Castle twice. Sunpu Castle is located in Aoi Ward, Shizuoka City, about a 15-minute walk from Shizuoka Station.
​Higashigomon and Tatsumi Yagura, for which I was in charge of the exhibition renewal, were restored in 1989 and 1989, respectively.
It was built as an auxiliary facility of the Shizuoka City History Museum, one of Shizuoka City's projects to create a historical and cultural base, with the aim of becoming a base for historical tourism in Shizuoka City. In fact, due to the influence of the Shizuoka City History Museum, which opened in January 2020, and the Taiga drama, people are increasingly visiting surrounding facilities, including Higashimikado and Tatsumi Yagura.

What exactly are the characteristics of Sunpu Castle?

bulk
First of all, the scale of the castle tower.
Since 2016, an excavation survey of the remains of the stone wall has been carried out in the park, and it has been revealed that the size of the castle tower is approximately 69 meters on the west side and 63 meters on the north side. This is one size larger than the castle tower of Edo Castle, and is said to be the largest castle tower in Japan.
Another thing is that you can talk about an entire era in one place. People have lived in this area since ancient times, and it is assumed that it was a place related to government offices from the Nara period to the beginning of the Heian period, and was a politically important place. During the Sengoku period, Sunpu Castle was built in the same area ruled by the Imagawa clan. In other words, Sunpu Castle can be said to be a place that compresses the history of Shizuoka into one place.
We planned this exhibition with the desire to help people understand the history of Shizuoka by dissecting the greatness of Sunpu Castle and telling the story of the castle's life, which has been a constant witness to the history of the region. I drew sketches with the designer in charge and brainstormed ideas in comics.

Yoshida
Wow, everyone is so good at drawing!

bulk
In the end, the graphic became ``Let's look back on the life of Sunpu Castle.''

Yoshida
Your sketch ideas are coming to life!

Inagaki
What was the customer's reaction to the idea of ``Let's look back on the life of Sunpu Castle''?

bulk
He said, ``The perspective of anthropomorphizing a castle is interesting.''

Yoshida
When anthropomorphizing a castle, it seems difficult to compare it to a person's age.

bulk
In the exhibition that conveys the greatness of Sunpu Castle, we have created a corner called ``Sunpu Castle Grand Anatomy.''
Here, we are introducing the profile of Sunpu Castle on 5W1H. The tagline conveys the castle in an easy-to-understand manner, and at the same time it includes explanatory graphics and small hands-on exhibits.

　

Yoshida
The diorama is also amazing. There is also video content.

bulk
We also included hands-on activities so that children could become familiar with the program. It seems that even children can enjoy learning, such as stone wall stamp *2 stamp experience worksheets and quizzes, which are popular.

*2 Engraving: Various characters and symbols carved into the stones used for stone walls. It is said to contain the family crests of feudal lords involved in the stone wall construction, the signatures of the stone masons, and the place where the stones were produced.

bulk
In the corner called ``Future Sunpu Castle,'' we created a space where information about the current surroundings of the castle can be disseminated, encouraging visitors to visit the surrounding area.

Yoshida
Are there actual exhibits?

bulk
yes, I have. Bronze shachihoko and tableware used in castles are on display.

Yoshida
It's really satisfying to see actual materials on display. If you focus too much on experiences, castle enthusiasts will feel uneasy.

Yoshida
The graphic on the back is hanging a banner.

　

forest
Care was taken to avoid damaging the restored wooden building as much as possible.
Additionally, in order to clearly see the space within the building, we used hanging banners instead of erecting walls as exhibits. By the way, the floor is wooden or tatami, so shoes and slippers are strictly prohibited.

It's great that everyone from children and castle beginners to castle enthusiasts can enjoy it.
Mr. Mori, please tell us about Okayama Castle, which you were in charge of.

forest
Okayama Castle was built by Naoie, the father of Hideie Ukita, who was a general in the Western Army in Sekigahara. The castle tower is so black that it is called ``Ujo'' (crow castle).
Also, while most castles have a rectangular plan, Okayama Castle has a scalene pentagonal plan.

Furthermore, it is said that the castle tower was usually used for things like armories, but Okayama Castle has a room for the feudal lord called ``Castle Lord's Room.''

It's a pretty unique castle.

forest
Okayama Castle was destroyed by air raids during World War II and was restored after the war. While some other castles have been reconstructed based on imagination, Okayama Castle has many drawing materials, such as a surveyed map of the castle before it was destroyed by a person who later became an architect when he was a student, and is relatively accurate. It is said to be a restoration.

Are there any special features in your exhibition method?

forest
It was completely supervised by a historian from Okayama City.
In addition, there was a request from the city to include a female perspective, so we devised a way to introduce the successive feudal lords in the form of a wife boasting about her husband. I feel that a female perspective will be important in future history exhibits as well.

We also set up an Okayama ninja corner after hearing from the supervisor that there were records of ninjas living in Okayama.

In the historical exhibition, there is a section about ``there are various theories'', but how did you deal with it?

Yoshida
At Aizu Tsuruga Castle, we took into account the opinions of the city, curators, and supervisors, while also promoting the opinions of the exhibitors. The final decision is made by the supervisor, but I think it is important to understand the context of the exhibition and the characteristics of the materials before proceeding with the planner's ideas along with the method of output.

forest
I think it's interesting that there are various theories. At Okayama Castle, we created an explanatory panel with the contents expressed by the supervising teacher as his own opinion.

Yoshida
We need to consider how to say proper nouns in each region. For example, in the exhibition at Aizu Tsuruga Castle, we changed the wording based on the feelings of the local area and the people of the prefecture.

Inagaki
There was also a debate at Kumamoto Castle's exhibition as to whether or not the name ``Kato Kiyomasa'' should be used in a way that honors him.

forest
In some cases, people were called differently during their childhood and adolescence, but in Shizuoka, the name has basically been unified to ``Tokugawa Ieyasu'' (or only Ieyasu).

I see. Experts make detailed adjustments to suit each region. Because it is a facility that conveys the charm of the region, we must consider the feelings of the local people.
Thank you very much for your valuable time today.

Up until now, I had been hesitant about exhibiting castles, but after hearing stories from the creators, I understood that castles are places packed with the history and charm of each region.
Let's continue to make castle-related projects exciting together!