From lowly attendants (samurai literally means 'those who serve') to
members of one of the world's most powerful military organizations, the
samurai underwent a progression of changes to reach a preeminent
position in Japanese society and culture. Even their eventual eclipse
did not diminish their image as elite warriors, and they would live on
in stories and films.
This proud and enduring tradition is exemplified and explored by the
carefully selected objects gathered here from Japanese locations and
from museums around the world. These objects tell the story of the
samurai from acting as the frontier guards for the early emperors to
being the inspiration for the kamikaze pilots.
The artifacts, many of which are seen here for the first time, include
castles, memorial statues, paintings and prints associated with the rise
of the samurai along with their famous armor and weapons. The latter
include the Japanese longbow, a thirteenth century bomb and the famous
samurai sword, but not every artifact here is from the past. In a
Japanese souvenir shop was found a cute little blue duck dressed as a
samurai complete with helmet, spear and surcoat, dressed authentically
as the brutal samurai Katō Kiyomasa, who was responsible for a massacre
at Hondo castle in 1589!