Travel with Hina Dolls

Hotel Gajoen Tokyo, a Museum Hotel of Japan Beauty, will bring together historical hina dolls from various regions in Japan to host the Hyakudan Hinamatsuri 2020: Travels with Hina Dolls from Izumo, Inaba, Hagi from January 24 to March 15, 2020. This unique exhibition, the largest hina doll exhibition held in Tokyo, will be on display at Hyakudan Kaidan, a Tangible Cultural Property of Tokyo Metropolitan Government, located within the hotel.

Celebrating its 11th year, this year’s exhibition features hina dolls from three prefectures-debutants: Tottori, Shimane and Yamaguchi. These historical areas are birthplaces of myth, legends, and famous figures from the last days of the Tokugawa Shogunate period. In addition to exhibiting the impressive Zashiki Hina, a popular display which recreates a scene using over 500 hina dolls, the exhibition will also display Jidai Hina, dolls representing the period of Edo, Meiji, Taisho, Showa, Heisei and Reiwa (the current era of Japan that began on 1 May 2019, when Emperor Akihito’s elder son, Naruhito, ascended the throne as the 126th Emperor of Japan).

An exciting new addition – Decorations with Hina Dolls – will be on display simultaneously with Hyakudan Hinamatsuri 2020. The new exhibition will introduce table settings with a hina doll festival theme to match contemporary interiors as well as ways to display hina dolls in the living room or entrance hall.

To date, 600,000 visitors have enjoyed the precious hina dolls exhibitions (the dolls usually can only be viewed locally) and the magnificent exhibition space, which is a Tangible Cultural Property.