Scholarly collaborators share research on samurai warriors of feudal Japan
In October 2024, the North Carolina Museum of Art opened an exhibition that was the product of an extensive collaboration between Matthew Hayes (Librarian for Japanese Studies and Asian American Studies), Morgan Pitelka (Professor of History and Asian Studies, UNC Chapel Hill), Megan McClory (PhD candidate, History, UNC Chapel Hill), the NCMA, and the Rubenstein Library as well as Chiyoko Lord of the Japan America Society of North Carolina, Gary Grose, a private collector of samurai artifacts, and Caroline Rocheleau, Director of Research and Curator of Ancient Art at NCMA. The exhibition, “Samurai: The Making of a Warrior,” features samurai arms and armor from exceptional private collections displayed alongside visually compelling cultural objects, offering the public a more nuanced view of samurai life and history.
The extensive research underlying the exhibition offers a counterpoint to the stereotypical images of samurai as frequently depicted in pop culture, films, and television. As Hayes noted, “While it may be the case that samurai were sword-wielding warriors trained in combat, there was much more to their lives off the battlefield. They were culturally trained, religiously devout, and crucially supported by women within their family units. In fact, this exhibit even offers a glimpse into the lives of women who were samurai in their own right.”
Hayes and Pitelka will discuss examples of how samurai in seventeenth-century Japan reconciled their martial practice with Zen Buddhism, against the background of a strong warrior government and highly stratified social structure, in a joint public lecture on November 24.
The exhibition will remain on display at the NCMA through February 2, 2025.
Read about the exhibit at the Duke Library Blog >>