The Louvre is a world-renowned museum.
Nearly 35,000 works of art from prehistory to the 19th century are on display in a total area of 60,600 m2, with a total collection of more than 380,000 objects.
The museum attracts 10 million visitors a year and the area along the banks of the Seine, including the museum, is a World Heritage Site. The Louvre is an asset of humanity that is loved and respected not only in France but around the world.
Did you know that there is such a thing as a Louvre in Japan?
“Another Japanese imitation,” you say?
Well, it’s true that it is an imitation.
But it’s not just about imitating shapes…
The museum is located in central Japan, in a place called Shirayama-cho, Tsu, Mie Prefecture.
To put it bluntly, it is in the countryside. Although there is one local train line nearby, it is far enough away from the main trunk motorway that it is a challenge to visit.
Still, to see what kind of place it is, take a Google Street View to the museum’s neighbourhood.
Hmm? You see some lonely signs. A large arrow points in the direction of the museum.
‘Pure Gold Daikanonji Temple’… A temple? Not an art museum? Besides, what is pure gold?
Let’s get back on track…
After about 200 metres along a peaceful country road… you will see..!
The statue of Nike of Samothrace! Behind it, you can also see the Venus de Milo!
A few metres high? It stands there, proudly displaying its white, divine form. It’s wonderful!
But do they have Nique and Venus statues in the open air?
I don’t know, I’ve never been to the real Louvre… (^_^;)
Oops! And further back… the Statue of Liberty?
Did the Louvre have a Statue of Liberty?
This is a much freer museum than I expected…
The exterior of the museum is very neat and clean. There is also a good-sized car park. The overall scale of the museum is not quite as large as the original Louvre, but it is a reasonably well-maintained museum.
The Venus de Milo and the Statue of Liberty standing side by side is an odd sight, but don’t be surprised by this.
Further in from the museum and car park is the temple precincts, beyond which is the 33-metre-high statue of the pure gold Kannon (Goddess of Mercy). (I think it’s probably gold leaf on the surface though…(^_^;)
image by ©「Daikanonji Temple」
That’s right, this Japanese Louvre is located on the grounds of the Daikanonji Temple, which was mentioned on the sign above, and is managed and operated by the Daikanonji Temple.
Let’s mention the name again. 『Louvre Sculpture Museum』.
And one more important thing should be mentioned.
The Louvre Sculpture Museum is not a cheap imitation of the Louvre in Paris. It is the only ‘sister museum’ in the world to be authorised by the original Louvre. (As it is not a branch museum, it is not listed on the official website of the Louvre.)
Takekawa Yujiro, the abbot of Daikanonji Temple, was deeply moved by the Venus de Milo at the Louvre Museum in Paris, which he visited in the 1960s.
He wanted the Japanese public to feel the compassionate beauty of Venus, which is similar to that of Kannon Bodhisattva, and approached the Louvre about showing the statue in Japan. At the time, overseas travel was not as common in Japan as it is now.
However, the sculpture was not allowed to be transported long distances due to the risk of damage. ※
He had no choice but to make a copy of Venus to display, but a copy is only a copy no matter how it is made.
So he came up with the idea of making a copy of the statue by moulding it from a real statue of Venus. I wanted to recreate the sublimity of Venus by making the statue exactly like the real one.
However, this proposal was also rejected by the museum. The reason was that the marble, which was made 1,800 years ago, could break at any time.
Still unable to give up, Takekawa persistently negotiated with the museum. He invested his own money and made 17 visits to Europe over a period of more than 20 years, making repeated appeals.
Takekawa’s enthusiasm finally moved the Louvre to grant permission for the moulding of the Venus and other statues and for the recognition of the museum as a sister museum.
Under the leadership of Mr de Chalon, Director of Fine Arts, the moulding of the statues was carried out and the replicas were transported to Japan, leading to the inauguration of the Louvre Sculpture Museum.
image by ©「Louvre Sculpture Museum」
The director of the Louvre at the time, Hubert Landet, made the following congratulatory remarks.
“When Yujiro Takekawa built the sister museum of the Louvre in Japan, for the first time in the museum’s history, he took moulds directly from the actual works of art sculpture on display, which had never been displayed outside the museum, and the museum’s technical staff put all of its resources into the complete reproduction.
The works selected include the Venus de Milo, the Nique de Samothrace and other first-rate sculptures from the history of world art.
We are convinced that the beauty of sculpture art, which until now has remained outside the gates of the museum, is sure to captivate many people.
I would like to thank Mr Takekawa, Director of the Louvre Sculpture Museum, for receiving this first award from the Louvre and the Federation of French National Museums, and for completing this historic project and contributing to deepening cultural ties between France and Japan.“
Nike, Venus and the Statue of Liberty are not the only highlights of the Louvre Sculpture Museum.
Inside the museum, you’ll find world-class statues such as Apollo of Belvedere, the Discus Thrower, Tutankhamun, the Hammurabi Code monument, the Virgin and Child, and the flute-playing satyr.
Alongside these are statues of the Thousand-Armed Avalokitesvara, the Golden Sakyamuni and other statues representing the spiritual worlds of Japan and the West, with a total of 1,300 items in the collection.
image by ©「Daikanonji Temple」
Perhaps even more interesting are the numerous statues placed in the Daikannon Temple at the back of the Sculpture Museum.
These include the aforementioned pure gold statue of the Great Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva and various other Buddhist statues. Many other unique sculptures also welcome visitors. Click here for more information. (In Japanese). https://www.daikannon.or.jp/pilgrim/sacred-place
There are many strange statues, such as a statue of the Kannon enjoying karaoke, a 7-metre clogs, and a group of dancing frogs. Even people who are not interested in Buddhism may enjoy these statues.
Although a little difficult to access, these museums and temples offer a high quality and unique art experience that cannot be found anywhere else.
The existence of such unique museums may be part of Japanese culture. If you have the chance, it might be fun to visit.
The easiest way to get there seems to be to get off at Sakakibara-onsenguchi Station on the Kintetsu Osaka Line (train).
※ A few years later (1964), on the occasion of the Tokyo Olympics, the Venus de Milo was exhibited in Japan at the joint request of the Japanese press and the Japanese Government. (The only exhibition outside France).