Museums and the History of Japan (Amirali)

Imagine your elementary schooling years and think, which the most boring class was. Physics, Mathematics or Language? No, can’t be any of them; these were one of the best subjects for most of us. The most boring was probably history. And why is that so? Because it had everything in it to be boring: heavy textbooks, lengthy text, no illustrations, strange names, fictitious description and what not. But the Professor always held the same view, “Learning history is important, my child!”

Actually the Professor was right, but there is a need to find a better way to learn history; a way that is cool, yet effective. And Japan has found such a way. In fact, in Japan people now simply love to know their history. It is now the most interesting and cool subjects. How? Because you can know all you need to know about the history of Japan by visiting the Edo Museum in Tokyo.

Edo Museum is a gigantic seven floor building that illustrates the history of Tokyo with models, paintings, artifacts and even live performances. It takes a visitor step by step to various aspects of life in traditional Tokyo. It shows the city map as it was centuries ago and the important places, including the railway line. It shows the housing structure both in rural and urban setup and how the people from rural areas came into contact with people of the city due to trade contacts. Next it shows the formation and different designations in the army and how they were paid their salary. Through artifacts of pottery and clay it shows how long life has existed in the area. The museum also shows daily life in the city, formation of houses, modes of attaining water and means of entertainment. The political influence is also shown though various illustrations. Another interesting feature is the Kabuki theatre which was a common mode of entertainment in the past.

In short, the Edo Museum provides a cool and effective way for children and adults alike to learn the history of Japan in an interactive way and, at the same time feel proud of their traditional roots and cultural values.