Japan’s Imperial Waka Poetry Anthology

This exhibition centres on a Japanese object in the Eton College Collections: a lacquer box containing a copy of the Nijūichidaishū (‘Collections of Twenty-one Reigns or Eras’). It is an anthology of poetry, called waka, compiled by imperial command between the 10th and 15th centuries. This manuscript copy of the anthology was given to Eton in 1921 by the Japanese Crown Prince Hirohito (later Emperor Showa) after his visit to Eton in 1921.

The exhibition will focus on the crown prince’s visit to Eton College, Japanese courtly culture and waka poetry through objects from the College Collections and loans from the Ashmolean and British Museums.

Verey Gallery, 24 November 2022 – 16 April 2023

Exhibition free, and open to the public on Sunday afternoons or by appointment, Monday to Friday, 10am-4pm.