August 23, 2011

The MU Museum of Anthropology will begin the year on a multicultural note with its newest exhibit — Japanese Art & Archery.

The exhibit showcases the high regard that feudal Japanese society held for archers and archery, reflecting the evolution of the sport from a primitive survival skill to an art form known as kyudo, which means “the way of the bow.”

Japanese Art & Archery includes a number of 19th-century, archery-themed okimono, ornate ivory statues often placed on an altar or in a special alcove in traditional Japanese homes, as well as netsuke (ornamental buttons) and inro (small, lacquered boxes) with depictions of kyudo.

There is also a selection of sculpted ceremonial arrowheads from the Charles E. Grayson archery collection, the largest such collection in the world.

In the feudal era, inro were men’s accessories that hung from the sash (obi) of the kimono or yukata and compensated for the garment’s lack of pockets; a netsuke would then hold the inro in place. Elaborate accessories like those on display generally indicated high social status, since only a wealthy man would have been able to afford the engraving process.

The exhibit was inspired by necessity when the ivory okimono, which was already MU property, began to bleach from sun exposure while on display at the Museum Support Center, Jessica Boldt, MU Museum of Anthropology assistant curator, who acquired and organized the collection, said.

Once it became clear that they would need to be moved to a more suitable environment in the Museum of Anthropology, Boldt planned the rest of the exhibit around the statues’ shared theme of archery in hopes of highlighting some of the pieces available in the Grayson Archery Collection.

Japanese Art & Archery will remain at the MU Museum of Anthropology in Swallow Hall until Feb. 1. In the meantime, Boldt encourages students to visit the exhibit and appreciate the unique beauty of the artifacts on display, as well as participate in other museum events like the annual Mizzou Gallery and Culture Crawl from 4 to 7 p.m. Sept. 15. More information on these and other events can be found at [anthromuseum.missouri.edu](http://anthromuseum.missouri.edu/).

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