OkayamaTravel

Conclude at a Museum of Dutch Scholars Where Even the Kaitai Shinsho Is Displayed

About this spot

A museum honoring Dutch scholars connected to Tsuyama who laid the foundation for modern Japanese medicine and science. Beginning with Udagawa Gensui, who comprehensively translated Dutch medical texts, through three generations of the Udagawa family, and Mitsukuri Genpo, who was active in diplomatic negotiations during the late Edo period, an astonishingly large number of scholars emerged from this castle town. Inside the museum, precious materials including an early edition of the Kaitai Shinsho are on display, clearly presenting the genealogy of knowledge from Dutch studies to modern science. Concluding your town tour here allows you to experience the other side of Tsuyama's castle town identity—a 'town of learning.'

Tips

Located just a short walk from Shio-machi Mukashi-machiya, making it easy to combine with the townscape tour. Admission closes 30 minutes before the museum closes, so pay attention to the time. The exhibits are fascinating upon careful reading, so enter with plenty of time.