Shoko Shuseikan
Museum of the Shimadzu family and the birthplace of modern Japan
Shoko Shuseikan is a museum set in Japan’s oldest stone machinery factory, built in 1865. Discover how the Shimadzu used their proximity to Asia and maritime expertise to bring in new technology and ideas from abroad. Find out what made Japan the only country in Asia able to replicate the industrial revolution, despite being closed off from the outside world. Follow the course of the Shimadzu family over 800 years, and see how the international relations they forged led to the development of industrialization in modern Japan. The Shoko Shuseikan Museum and Sengan-en were recognized as a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Site related to Japan’s Meiji Industrial Revolution in 2015.