A lot of beautiful and interesting art! ? The Museum MATSUSHIMA

The Museum MATSUSHIMA is a museum located in Matsushima Town that houses beautiful and interesting exhibits, including music boxes.

There used to be a museum in Matsushima called the Matsushima Music Box Museum that displayed many music boxes from around the world.
The Music Box Museum was renovated as the "Belgium Orgel Museum" in 2008 and has become a very popular facility among tourists.
It was March 11, 2011, not long after that new start.
The Great East Japan Earthquake occurred.
The coastal town of Matsushima will suffer severe damage from the tsunami.
The Music Box Museum was also unable to escape the damage and decided to close in the same year.
Voices of sadness over the closing of the museum rose from within and outside the prefecture.

But it's been 5 years since then.
In September 2016, with a grant from the prefecture, the Music Box Museum was reborn as "The Museum MATSUSHIMA"!
At the reborn Museum, you can enjoy not only music boxes but also three other collections: the "Toy Collection" by Teruhisa Kitahara, who is known as a "toy collector," and the "Segawa Mode Collection," which exhibits dresses from the golden age of Paris haute couture. Power up as a facility.

In this article, we will introduce the charm of "The Museum MATSUSHIMA"!

Kitahara Toy Collection

The first thing you will see upon entering the museum is the Kitahara Toy Collection.
Various toys from around the world are on display, including motion displays, tin toys, and celluloid toys owned by Teruhisa Kitahara, a toy appraiser known for ``Good Fortune! Anything Appraisal Group''.

What you should pay attention to is the motion display.
To be precise, this is not a toy, but an actual store display used in the United States from 1925 to 1955 to attract customers.
As the name suggests, it is characterized by motion.
Although they only repeat certain movements, their movements are delicate and you can see the sophisticated techniques of the time.

They were not commercially available, but leased, so they were all not for sale.
As a result, they are rare and valuable exhibits.

An electrically operated object that repeats a certain movement was unusual for people at the time, and it may be that they couldn't help but stop and admire it.
The motion display on display can be seen in action once an hour.
They rotate at each exhibition location, so if you wait a little, you can see them in action, so you don't have to worry about visiting anytime!

music box collection

When you go up the stairs, many music boxes are waiting for you.
Yes, the music boxes that were active at the former Matsushima Music Box Museum survived the earthquake and regained the ability to play music once again.

The ``Music Box Path'' where you can get a glimpse of the history of music boxes is wonderful, but the highlight is definitely the concert hall.
There, concerts with various music boxes are held once an hour.
Of particular note is the world's largest music box, which is 7m high and 9m wide.
The overwhelming sound pressure far exceeds the level of a music box that we can imagine, making it feel like listening to an orchestra.
It is a wonderful work of art that deserves to be called a concert organ.

Why not take a moment to be surrounded by the sounds while remembering the music boxes that have been restored and brought back to life after being damaged by the earthquake?

Segawa mode collection

The last thing on display is the history of beautiful dresses.
Enjoy high-end tailored clothing designed during the golden age of Paris haute couture.

Haute couture refers to high-quality tailored clothing.
The dresses on display at The Museum are valuable works by famous designers created during the heyday of haute couture from the 1870s to the 1960s.
They are arranged by year, so one way to enjoy them is not only to admire their beauty, but also to see the changing trends.
Please enjoy the design by the designer and the careful tailoring by the craftsman.

Museum shop and museum cafe

The Museum MATSUSHIMA also has a shop and a cafe.

At the museum cafe, you can enjoy rich coffee made using a rare roasting method called woodfire roasting, as well as sweets, light meals, and lunch.
It's fun to take a break while talking about what you saw at the museum!

The museum shop sells not only music boxes but also tin toys and Studio Ghibli character goods.
You can also purchase Miyagi specialty products and leather products from Samurai Craft, a leather manufacturing company in Miyagi.

You can enter both without paying an admission fee, so it's also recommended for those who are tired of sightseeing in Matsushima or those who want to buy some unique souvenirs.
``The Museum MATSUSHIMA'' is the last facility you will arrive at when walking from Matsushima Kaigan Station to tourist spots.
If you want to know the charm of Matsushima that is different from the scenery and historical facilities, please come visit us!

INFORMATION