Kanazawa Bunko, formally titled the Kanagawa Prefectural Kanazawa-Bunko Museum, is a museum located in Kanazawa Ward, Yokohama, Japan. It features a collection of traditional Japanese and Chinese art objects, many dating from the Kamakura period. Originally build as a private library, Kanazawa Bunko was one of the two most important centers of learning in medieval Japan, with Ashikaga Gakkō being the other. The library was opened in 1275 by Hōjō Sanetoki, a grandson of Hōjō Yoshitoki, second regent of the Kamakura shogunate. The library's collection has not remained intact, although some original documents remain. The existing building, built in 1990, houses the existing collection. Kanazawa Bunko shares its name with Kanazawa-Bunko Station, which is a limited express stop station on the Keikyu Main Line of Keikyu Railways. Western side of the Temple garden with the pond is another open space, whose hill has two tunnels. One is closed with meshed wires. Another leads us to Kanazawa-Bunko Museum. The space at the mouth of the tunnels had a chateau of Kanasawa-Hojoh clan. Hojoh Sanetoki was a skilled politician and a dilettante who was already famous for his intelligence when he was ten years old. Sanetoki started to collect books and in 1275 built the first organized library in Japan. He built the archive not next to his chateau, but another side of the hill separated by the fireproof hardpan. For the convenience of the book owner, they dug a tunnel to connect two properties which is now covered by the wire-mesh for safety. Sanetoki 実時 treasured the books and thought the contingency “just in case.” His son, his grandson, and his great-grandson were also functioned as “Lord Chamberlain” for Kamakura Government, which made them study traditional culture of Kyoto deeply as their dad / grandpa. With their power and money, they continued to amass many fine books at the time. Their love for learning and caution were paid off. Even after their family was extinct, the library survived and was maintained by Shomyoji Temple that became a seminary. From time to time the grandees of Japanese politics supported Shomyoji Temple to maintain the facility … some of them requested the return for their help. Tokugawa Ieyasu 徳川家康 moved huge volumes from Kanasawa Bunko to Edo Castle. The PM Itoh returned the books taken by Ieyasu to Kanasawa Bunko in the late 19th century. In 1930 the place became the Central Library of Kanagawa Prefecture by the national law. In 1954, it became Kanagawa Prefectural Kanazawa-Bunko Museum specialized in historical documents and artefacts. The treasures of the Museum includes 5 National Treasures; portraits of 4 chiefs of Kanasawa-Hojoh clan, and the only remaining copy in the world for The Wen Xuan 文選, the 5thcentury anthology of classic Chinese poems composed in BC. The place is an information center for researchers of Japanese Middle Age, publishes an academic journal, and organizes numerous symposiums, lecture series, and exhibition for Japanese history. At the moment, they collaborate with Yugyoji Temple 遊行寺 in Fujisawa City for an exhibition of a national treasure, Ippen Hijiri-E until December 13, 2015.
