The exhibition is closed
Last opening day was 30 December 2023.
The exhibition is placed on the 4th floor, which is only accessible by stairs. Read about accessibility at the Historical museum.
Our story begins in the turbulent Sengoku period of civil war in the 1400 and 1500s, when the samurai was a brutal and feared warrior.
In the exhibition, you can see a selection of 15 samurai armours, as well as swords and other items the samurai used. Among the highlights, is the suit of armour Roald Amundsen received as a gift on his travels in Japan. See the samurai’s characteristic helmets, decorated with fantastic figures inspired by nature - status symbols used to tell the warriors apart and scare the enemy.
When the civil wars ended around 1600, an era of peace began that lasted nearly 270 year – the Edo period. The samurai warrior became a bureaucrat and exchanged his sword for a pen. However, in his heart and mind, he was still a warrior, and continued to wear his armour with pride.
As a paid civil servant, the samurai now had leisure time he could use to pursue art and culture. We see how the samurai are closely connected to traditional Japanese arts, such as poetry, calligraphy, theatre, flower arrangement and the tea- ceremony.
The culture of the samurai is still alive today. We meet modern “samurai» in public parades, in historical re-enactments, and in other types of popular culture, such as manga, gaming and anime.
