【Discover the Feature Exhibition】 Bronzeware in Fukuoka Exhibition

 

Feature Exhibition Room 4

April 19th (Tue.) ~ June 12th (Sun.), 2022

 

Grave goods excavated from the Yoshitake-Takgagi site

 One of the things that characterizes the Yayoi period (c.800 BCE – 250 CE) is the bronzeware. Fukuoka boasts one of the largest quantities of bronzeware excavated in Japan.

 Bronzeware was introduced to the Japanese archipelago, initially in very small quantities, not too long after the introduction of rice cultivation.

Then, in the second and third centuries BCE, it was fully introduced to the Japanese archipelago.

Much of the bronze introduced to Japan was used for making weapons, such as bronze spearheads, daggers, and halberds. First, these were made in the Korean peninsula, but it soon became possible to manufacture these artifacts in Japan.

 After the first century BCE, the amount of bronzeware brought from China, such as mirrors and coins, began to increase. Various kind of bronzeware was also produced in Japan including Tomoe-shaped bronzeware, which were unique to Japan.

 This exhibition brings together a collection of bronzeware produced during the Yayoi period and excavated in Fukuoka. As well as the fascinating bronze items currently on display in the Feature Exhibition Room, we hope you will take the time to enjoy the exhibits on display in the Permanent Exhibition Room.

Exhibition view