Inside the Kumaya Art Museum 熊谷美術館内部

Official explanation

The museum’s collection is displayed mainly in the three large storehouses (kura) on the grounds. The Kumaya family were wealthy merchants and official purveyors to the Mōri family, lords of Chōshū domain during the Edo period (1603–1867), and the exhibition rooms in the storehouses showcase noteworthy items that were collected by the Kumaya family. The collection includes ink paintings, tea ceremony utensils, documents, books, and various household items.

On permanent display is the oldest piano in Japan, a British-style pianoforte. It was given to the fourth Kumaya Goemon (1795–1860) in 1828 by the German doctor Philipp Franz von Siebold (1796–1866), who worked for the Dutch East India Company in Japan.

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The old family home is located to the southwest of the three storehouses and was used by the Kumaya family to receive important visitors, including the Mōri lords. Today, it is used to display works of art by contemporary artists and as an event space for concerts and lectures. Artists are allowed to use the space to enhance the impact of their art.

The meticulously kept Edo-period gardens feature holly trees and a trio of pine, fir, and Elaeocarpus trees pruned in the “round, triangular, square” (maru sankaku shikaku) format favored in Zen art. A 600-year-old cycad and a 300-year-old Yōgō pine tree also grow in the garden.

出典: 地域観光資源の多言語解説文データベース（観光庁） — www.mlit.go.jp/tagengo-db. この英語解説文は観光庁の地域観光資源の多言語解説整備支援事業で作成しました。
Source: Japan Tourism Agency, Multilingual Explanation Database. This English text was produced by the Japan Tourism Agency's multilingual explanation project and is shown unedited. Opening hours and services may have changed since it was written.