Marugame City Museum

Marugame City Museum is a municipal history museum located within the grounds of Marugame Castle (in Kameyama Park), a castle that retains its original keep. Since its founding in 1972 (Shōwa 47), it has housed a collection of more than 39,000 items, centered on historical, folk, and arts-and-crafts materials associated with the Kyōgoku family, who served as lords of the Marugame domain. For sword enthusiasts, it is known as the museum that holds the Important Art Object "Nikkari Aoe."

Nikkari Aoe — A Large Wakizashi of the Aoe School

Nikkari Aoe is a large wakizashi believed to date from the Nanbokuchō period. It belongs to the Aoe school of Bitchū Province. The Aoe school was a group of swordsmiths that flourished in Bitchū from the late Heian period through the Nanbokuchō period. Its works are divided by era into Ko-Aoe, Chū-Aoe, and Sue-Aoe. This blade is classified as Chū-Aoe and is traditionally attributed to Aoe Sadatsugu. It has been designated an Important Art Object by the state.

The name "Nikkari" is said to derive from a legend in which an apparition that smiled at its wielder was slain with this blade, and the story was widely told in later ages. Among the many famous named swords, this is a blade whose name carries a tale of the uncanny. It is noteworthy from the perspective of both the reception history of Japanese swords and the history of storytelling.

Transmission to the Kyōgoku Family

An important point in its provenance is that during the Osaka Campaign of 1614 (Keichō 19), Kyōgoku Tadataka is said to have received this blade from Toyotomi Hideyori. Thereafter, Nikkari Aoe was passed down within the Kyōgoku family. Even after the Kyōgoku entered Sanuki as lords of the Marugame domain, it was preserved as a family treasure. It later left Kyōgoku hands, but in 1997 (Heisei 9), the 400th anniversary of the construction of Marugame Castle, the City of Marugame purchased it and it returned to Marugame. The very course of transmission, from the Toyotomi to the Kyōgoku and then to the Marugame domain, reflects the political relations from the late Sengoku period to the formation of early modern daimyo houses.

Kyōgoku Family Materials and Marugame Castle

The museum's collection is not limited to swords. Along with arms, furnishings, historical documents, and arts and crafts transmitted in the Kyōgoku family of the Marugame domain, a systematic body of folk materials from Marugame and the Sanuki region has been assembled. This allows a comprehensive view of local history from the domain period to the modern era.

Marugame Castle, where the museum stands, is a castle with one of the twelve original keeps that remain in Japan, and it is also known for its tall stone walls. Because the castle, the keep, materials transmitted in the daimyo family, and regional folk materials are concentrated on a single hill, the museum's distinctive feature is that visitors can experience the warrior culture of the whole of Sanuki Province at one site. Note that the actual blade of Nikkari Aoe is usually shown only in limited-period special exhibitions, so it is advisable to check the exhibition schedule on the official website before visiting.