The Japan Gallery in the V&A museum just happens to be one of my favourites in that particular institution, full of exquisitely designed and hand-crafted items from that Far Eastern culture. I expected more of the same then from this Samurai exhibition across town at the British Museum, and I wasn't disappointed. Samurai relates the history of the fearsome and iconic Samurai, an honourable, disciplined, feared and fearless warrior class of fighters. Known in Japan as bushi, the samurai gained political dominance from the 1100s to 1600 as wealthy households hired warriors for private security provision. The mercenary samurai group then developed into a rural gentry during a prolonged period of peace, beginning in 1615. During this 250 year period of peace the samurai moved away from the battlefield to become an elite social class that included women. They were warriors in name only as there were no battles to be fought. Samurai men formed the government, serving as ministers and bureaucrats, scholars and patrons of the arts. Many became leaders in scholarship and the arts, as patrons, poets and painters, in a world where intellectual and cultural pursuits were just as important as fighting skills and swordsmanship. By the late 19th century, the hereditary status of samurai had been abolished and their supposed chivalric values developed into the myth of bushido, or 'the way of the warrior'. This new code, promoting values of patriotism and self-sacrifice, occurred during Japan's period of colonial expansion and military aggression. This exhibition is made up of around 300 objects which include arms, armour, paintings, woodblock prints, books, clothing, ceramics and photographs with some objects on view for the first time relating the history and culture of the samurai class. The exhibition revealed some interesting facts such as nearly half of all the samurai class were actually women, which was a great surprise to me. Not many of them fought in combat but their was one - Tomoe Gozen - who died in 1247. Gozen had a fearsome reputation as a warrior and her exploits on the battlefield were recorded in The Tale of the Heike, in which she ripped off the head of a fellow samurai named Uchida Saburo leyoshi who attempted to capture her for ransom. As female high ranking samurai began to engage in combat less, as befitting their status they were educated in certain etiquette to prepare them for marriage, and wore kimono with long sleeves decorated with elements from nature to demonstrate their higher status. There are some great samurai suits of armour on display, as well as painted scrolls and screens to show the samurai as a cultured group. I especially admired the gold lacquer work wares on display appreciating the hours of labour and exquisite craftsmanship which went into their construction. The last section of the exhibition looks at the lasting influence of the samurai on modern popular culture with a visually impressive display of film, television, manga, video games and contemporary art, stunningly displayed to great effect on a dense collaged bank of screens and hanging banners. There was even an original Darth Vader costume demonstrating the lasting global influence of the samurai and their continued relevance. It was a great ending to a wonderful, enlightening exhibition.
Samurai
until 4th May
The Sainsbury Exhibitions Gallery
British Museum
Great Russell Street
London
WC1B
