The is an open-air museum located within Koganei Park, Tokyo, Japan. It opened in 1993 as a branch of the Edo-Tokyo Museum and is operated by the Tokyo Metropolitan Foundation for History and Culture, a public interest incorporated foundation. The museum relocates and reconstructs buildings that originally stood in Tokyo (formerly Edo) from the Edo period through the mid-Showa era, which could no longer be preserved at their original locations, and presents them as part of the city's cultural heritage. The site covers an area of .
The origins of the open-air museum date back to 1934 with the opening of the Tokyo Kyōdo Shiryō Chinretsukan (lit. "Tokyo Local History Exhibition Hall") in Arisugawa-no-miya Memorial Park. In 1948, it was relocated to Inokashira Park and renamed the Musashino Hakubutsukan (lit. "Musashino Museum"). In 1954, it was moved again to Koganei Park and reopened as the Musashino Kyōdokan (lit. "Musashino Folklore Museum"), which remained in operation until 1991.
The animator Hayao Miyazaki often visited here during the creation of his film, Spirited Away, for inspiration.
Restored buildings
thumb|350px|Around East Zone Square (April 2009)
The park is divided into three zones. The west zone is lined with Musashino farm homes and Yamanote houses, the center zone is lined with prestigious historic buildings, and the east zone is a reproduction of the downtown area. The following is a complete list of buildings exhibited at the Edo-Tokyo Open Air Architectural Museum.
See also
- Meiji Mura, an open-air architectural museum/theme park in Inuyama, near Nagoya in Aichi prefecture
References
External links
- Japan guide information
- unofficial video of the park — and accessible gateway to J google.