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Asahi Shimbun
4 days ago
- Business
- Asahi Shimbun
Why world's thinnest ‘washi' paper is a savior for museums
Hiroyoshi Chinzei, president of Hidakawashi Co., which produces what is reputed to be the world's thinnest 'washi' traditional paper. Photo taken in Hidaka, Kochi Prefecture, on June 11 (Ryuta Kameoka) HIDAKA, Kochi Prefecture--A small manufacturer of Japanese paper here has won a global following by producing what is reputed to be the world's thinnest traditional washi paper. With a thickness of just 0.02 millimeter, the paper is translucent. It is also incredibly light, making it ideal to repair old documents and books, even works of art. The company has become a savior for libraries, museums and galleries desperate to protect and preserve their treasures. Made from 'kozo,' a type of paper mulberry tree native to Asia, a single sheet of the ultrathin washi measuring 1 square meter weighs a mere 2 grams. 'We are in the era of digital transformation, but the importance of original written works can never be overlooked,' said the company's president, Hiroyoshi Chinzei, 56. Hidakawashi Co. was founded in Kochi in 1949 by Chinzei's great-grandfather using techniques for 'Tengujoshi,' another type of thin washi from Gifu Prefecture. The company has a dozen or so employees and chalks up around 120 million yen ($818,000) in annual sales. It moved to Hidaka in 1967. According to Chinzei, Hidakawashi initially won renown in 2009 after it developed the special washi using a machine introduced with subsidies from the central government. The same result would be difficult to achieve by hand, the traditional washi making method passed down in Japan for centuries. Hidakawashi was flooded with requests for consultation from the National Archives of Japan, researchers and others following a writeup by the Japan Society for the Conservation of Cultural Property about the paper used in repairing the Ungyo statue at the Hozomon gate of Sensoji temple in Tokyo. In the 2010s, it developed another ultrathin paper, which is pale yellow, in response to calls from museums and libraries desperate to repair pages in books that had become discolored or brittle. The paper with lighter weight of 1.6 grams per square meter is used in repairs of old masterpieces, and even Noh wardrobes. The primary emphasis is on cultural artifacts produced in and before the Edo Period (1603-1867). The paper is also used in repairs of old official documents and books. 'Modern paper is acidic, which makes the ink dry faster. It allows documents to be printed quickly and in quantity, but the paper fibers eventually break down because of the acid,' Chinzei explained. 'Modern paper is at such risk.' The company has also set its sights on expanding overseas. Chinzei traveled to China and the Philippines, as well as countries in Europe, the United States and Brazil, to drum up business. That led to Harvard University contacting the company in 2019 or thereabouts for help to preserve its original architectural drawings of Yoyogi National Stadium in the capital designed by Kenzo Tange for the 1964 Tokyo Olympics. The drawings had turned yellow and brittle. Another call came from the Duchess Anna Amalia Library in Weimar, Germany. The World Heritage site, for which the German polymath Johann Wolfgang von Goethe once served as director, was gutted by a fire in 2004. Numerous books and materials were lost. Others were partially burned and their remaining pages were distorted due to heat. But the works were restored with washi from Hidakawashi. 'I was overwhelmed with emotion, thinking how our washi was being useful in faraway places,' Chinzei said. Hidakawashi now does business in more than 30 countries and regions. Sales for repair projects account for about 40 percent of its dealings, 90 percent of which originate overseas. 'My hope is that we can increase demand for use other than repairs, such as art and interior design,' Chinzei said.
Yomiuri Shimbun
18-07-2025
- Politics
- Yomiuri Shimbun
Original Copy of Emperor Showa's Announcement of Japan's Surrender in WWII to Be Displayed at National Archives of Japan
The original copy of the 'Imperial Rescript of the Termination of the War' will be shown at a special exhibition held at the National Archives of Japan in Chiyoda Ward, Tokyo, starting Saturday. The special exhibition features about 30 valuable items, including the imperial rescript owned by the archives, to mark the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II and the beginning of the postwar era. According to the archives, the decision to surrender was made at an Imperial Council meeting held in the presence of Emperor Showa from Aug. 9 to 10, 1945. The drafting of the 'Imperial Rescript of the Termination of the War' began after the decision was made. After the draft was reviewed at an Imperial Council meeting on Aug. 14, the Emperor recorded his reading of the rescript. This led to the broadcast of the Emperor's announcement of Japan's surrender on Aug. 15. The original copy will be on display between Aug. 8 and 21 during the special exhibition. Visitors will be able to observe traces of corrections, such as added words, which reveal the meticulous consideration given to the document's content and the careful selection of words to persuade the nation and military amid the chaos leading up to the war's end, according to the archives. Also on display will be the original Imperial Rescript declaring war on the United States and Great Britain on Dec. 8, 1941, as well as damage reports from the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Materials on occupation policy will also be presented, including a Japanese translation of a document prepared by the Japanese government when the General Headquarters of the Allied Forces instructed the government to abolish the Peace Preservation Law after the war. 'The 'end of the war' in Japan is not just the day the war ended. It also marks the true beginning of Japan's postwar era. We hope this exhibition will provide an opportunity to consider the connection between the wartime era and the present,' said a National Archives of Japan archivist. The special exhibition will run until Sept. 15. The archives will be closed on Aug. 25. Opening hours are from 9:15 a.m. to 5 p.m., and until 8 p.m. on Fridays. Admission is free.
02-06-2025
- Politics
Groundbreaking Ceremony Held for New National Archives in Tokyo
News from Japan Politics Jun 2, 2025 19:39 (JST) Tokyo, June 2 (Jiji Press)--A groundbreaking ceremony was held at a site near the Diet, Japan's parliament, in Tokyo's Chiyoda Ward on Monday for the new National Archives of Japan, which is expected to open at the end of fiscal 2029. The new facility was initially planned to open in fiscal 2026, but the opening was delayed due to research on culturally important burial grounds and a difficult bidding process. The Parliamentary Museum, which previously stood on the site, will also be rebuilt. The new archives will have three stories above ground and four underground levels. Including the new museum, the total area will be 42,400 square meters. The total construction cost is estimated at about 48.89 billion yen. The current main building of the archives, located in Kitanomaru Garden, north of the Imperial Palace in central Tokyo, was built in 1971. In light of the aging facility and the prospect of the stacks there becoming full, the government started discussing reconstruction in 2014. [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.] Jiji Press
