Paris, 3 February 2012
The exhibition “Samouraï, Armure du guerrier” at Musée du Quai Branly which has now finished, received a huge success attracting a total of 148,000 visitors.
For the first time in Europe, a large number of Japanese warrior armour, issued from the Barbier-Mueller collection, was gathered in Paris. The collection, displayed from 8 November 2011 to 29 January 2012, received a daily average of 1.993 visitors. This important rate made this exhibition – after “Maya” and “Fleuve Congo” – the third most visited at Musée du Quai Branly.
The collection was originally displayed in Dallas (Texas) and was part on one of the most important collections in the United States. The majority of the pieces presented at Musée du Quai Branly date from the Edo Period (also known as Tokugawa Period), from 1602 to 1867.
The samurai belonged to the intellectual elite of Japanese society and often practised disciplines such as calligraphy, poetry and literature. Their helmets, true artistic works, had many functions: t0 highlight the status of the warrior, to scare the enemy and especially, to protect the warrior wearing it.
After the successful exhibition in Paris, the 140 pieces of armour will be exhibited at Musée de la Civilisation in Quebec from April 2012.