企画展示

Located at the subduction zone of oceanic plates, Japan frequently experiences earthquakes, volcanic eruptions , and tsunamis, the earliest recorded disaster being that of the 684 Hakuho Quake. The number of tsunamis in Japan totals 195 over a 1,313 year period, averaging one event every 6.7 years, the highest rate of occurrence in the world. This figure is small by comparison with floods and earthquakes, however, a fact that accounts for the low level of tsunami awareness among Japanese. Fortunately, Japan's historical record, combined with scientific insights and technological advances such as computer simulation, provides a rich body of information and perspectives on their hazards.
The exhibition, comprising four sections, emphasizes the collaboration between history, social studies, the natural sciences, and technology in its presentation of a history of tsunamis in Japan.

Earthquakes have been recorded in Japanese historical documents for over 1,300 years. In addition to the official chronicles written by officers of the imperial court in the ancient capitals of Nara and Kyoto, diaries of noblemen and priests make frequent mention of past earthquakes and tsunamis.
For the current exhibition, we selected five historical earthquakes to present.The Zenkoji Quake and the 1858 Hietsu Quake represent typical inland earthquakes.The exhibition also presents detailed distributions of seismic intensity in the Edo-Tokyo area for the 1703 Genroku Quake, the 1855 Ansei-Edo Quake, and the 1923 Great Kanto Quake.

There are many volcanoes in the Japanese archipelago. Of the roughly 1,500 active volcanoes in the world, 108 are in Japan. This exhibition seeks to illustrate important features of volcanic disasters by focusing on the representative cases of Mounts Fuji, Unzen, and Asama.
Mt. Fuji is the largest volcano in Japan. During a very large eruption that occurred about 300 years ago (1707), abundant ash and scoria were ejected over an area reaching as far as Edo. Mt. Unzen in Kyushu is another active volcano. It had been queit for 192 years before it erupted again in 1990. Mt. Asama is yet another example of very active and dangerous volcanoes. Its eruption in 1783 caused enormous disaster.
As this exhibition aims to show the more people are aware of the nature of volcanic eruptions, the less they will suffer from them. Volcanic landscapes and hot springs are a pleasure to enjoy, but we must also have wisdom to foretell dangers and to mitigate against their damage as much as possible.