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The aftermath of the Great East Japan Earthquake in the field of culture and the arts

1．The damage situation of cultural properties designated by the government

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The number of damages：744 (the Metropolis and 18 prefectures) 〈as of March 1, 2012〉

National
Treasures		 Important
Cultural
Properties		 Special
Historic
Sites		 Historic
Sites		 Special
Places
of
Scenic
Beauty		 Places
of
Scenic
Beauty		 Natural
Monuments		 Important
Preservation
Districts
for
Groups
of
Traditional
Buildings		 Important
Tangible
Folk
Cultural
Properties		 Others subtotal
5 160 6 90 5 17 16 6 4 445 754

＊Since there are double-designated properties, the “subtotal” is not equal to the total of each item.

Main damaged cultural properties

  1. ・National Treasure：Priest's quarter and corridor of Zuigan-ji Temple (partial collapse or crack in mud walls finished by Japanese traditional plaster )
  2. ・National Treasure：Amida-do Hall 〈Fukushima Prefecture〉 (minor damage to door joints)
  3. ・Special Place of Scenic Beauty：Matsushima 〈Miyagi Prefecture〉 (damages caused by the earthquake and tsunami in many places)
  4. ・Special Place of Scenic Beauty and Special Historic Sites：Moutsuji Temple Garden 〈Iwate Prefecture〉(the standing stone arranged in the garden inclined)
  5. ・Special Historic Site：Edo Castle 〈Tokyo Metropolis〉 (some stone walls collapsed)

2．The damage situation of cultural facilities 〈as of March 1, 2012〉

The number of damaged facilities：290（the Metropolis and 15 prefectures）

Aomori Prefecture (3) Iwate Prefecture (19) Miyagi Prefecture (39) Akita Prefecture (2) Yamagata Prefecture (11)
Fukushima Prefecture (42) Ibaraki Prefecture (42) Tochigi Prefecture (22) Gunma Prefecture (4) Saitama Prefecture (35)
Tokyo Metropolis (20) Chiba Prefecture (27) Kanagawa Prefecture (11) Niigata Prefecture (7) Nagano Prefecture (1)
Shizuoka Prefecture (5)        

Main damages

・The ceiling of the hall fell or broke. ・The equipment of the stage broke. ・The walls and glasses broke. ・Water pipes broke. 　etc.

3．Influence on performances and exhibitions in the field of culture and art

　Some performances and exhibitions were cancelled or postponed under the influence of the Great East Japan Earthquake.

(1) Cancellation or postponement of performances

  1. ・National Treasure：Priest's quarter and corridor of Zuigan-ji Temple (partial collapse or crack in mud walls finished by Japanese traditional plaster )
  2. ・National Treasure：Amida-do Hall 〈Fukushima Prefecture〉 (minor damage to door joints)
  3. ・The sponsor's self-imposed control, judging from the social situation. ・Damage to the hall
  4. ・Confusion of means of transportation
  5. ・The overseas artist's cancellation of the visit to Japan　 etc.

(2) Postponement of the exhibitions

  1. ・Hiroshima Prefectural Art Museum “Birth of the Impressionist School”
  2. ・Yamanashi Prefectural Museum of Art “Maurice Denis”
  3. ・Toyota Municipal Museum of Art “Giorgio Morandi”
  4. ・Mitsui Memorial Museum “Hokusai Katsushika”
  5. ・Yokohama Museum of Art “Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts”
  6. ・Tokyo National Museum “Sharaku” special exhibition
  7. ・Seiji Togo Memorial SOMPO JAPAN Museum of Art “Giovanni Segantini”
  8. ・Tokyo Fuji Art Museum “The Palace of Heaven on Earth: Works from the Palace Museum in Beijing: Exhibition”
  9. ・Museum of Modern Art, Gunma “Glass Admired by the Russian Tsars”
  10. ・Fukushima Prefectural Museum of Art “Ben Shahn” 　 etc.
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