Shinjuku Historical Museum 新宿歴史博物館

If you are passionate about history and want to learn more about one of Tokyo's emblematic districts, the Shinjuku Historical Museum is for you. Not far from the large Shinjuku Gyoen park, this small museum offers an educational route to learn more about Shinjuku. As often in Japanese museums, beautiful reconstructions are presented for curious visitors.

The museum retraces the history of the place since the Palaeolithic, more than 30,000 years ago. It explains the birth of this district (区, ku, in Japanese), which took its name in 1698.

The museum is organized into five chronological and thematic parts:

The Archaeological Shinjuku

This space dates back to the origins of the place and displays ancient ceramics, especially from the Jomon period (15,000 BC to 300 BC). Some exhibits thus date back to 12,000 BC.

Medieval Shinjuku

The medieval area focuses on the history of the Ushigome family, after which one of Shinjuku's neighborhoods is named.

Shinjuku during Edo and Meiji

The Edo period, and especially the Meiji era (1868 - 1912), marks the beginning of the modern development of Tokyo and thus of Shinjuku. In the rooms, you will come face to face with a magnificent life-size reconstruction: that of a period shop, a tanagura, which was an old pastry shop located in Yotsuya. The second "highlight" of this space is the large model depicting the Naito-Shinjuku district at this time.

To discover: The Edo Museum - Tokyo

Shinjuku and modern literature

Shinjuku has long had close ties with prominent modern Japanese writers, beginning with Natsume Soseki (1867-1916), born in Kikuicho in Shinjuku. The latter is one of the best-known Japanese writers, and he played an important role in Japan's opening up to the West. It was also represented on the old version of the 1,000 yen note in 1984. You will be able to examine the original manuscripts of the great masters of Japanese literature.

To read Japanese history: a simplified chronology.

Shinjuku during the Showa era

This is the most impressive part of the museum, which offers an insight into everyday life during the Showa period, before the Second World War. Thus, a life-size and fully furnished reproduction of a house from the time is presented, as well as an actual tram and even a replica of a shopping street from the time, where you can walk. Examples of clothing and everyday objects are also presented in a didactic way.

Finally, the museum hosts, in addition to the permanent collections, a temporary exhibition on a theme related to Shinjuku, for example, Shinjuku Gyoen Park.

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