Tokyo National Research Institute for Cultural Properties - Publications
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Hannya the Demon : restoration report : the cooperative program for the conservation of Japanese art objects overseas : No.2015-2
Get PDFナショナル・ギャラリー・オブ・ビクトリア（オーストラリア連邦）所蔵 National Gallery of Victoria, Commonwealth of Australia佐々木泉玄筆 絹本着色 掛軸装 １幅 SASAKI Sengen, color on silk, a hanging scroll平成 28 年度修復事業 2016 Japanese Fiscal Yearboo
Research Note: The Creation of Cultural Properties Databases and Their Meaning
Get PDFSince its founding, the Tokyo National Research Institute for Cultural Properties has collected various materials on cultural properties overall and created archives of these materials. In recent years we have made an effort to digitize these materials for their enhanced preservation and usage, and thus have begun to manage and operate digital data. These materials have been archived in different metadata items and registered standards depending on their subject materials and their research aims. This approach made it difficult to uniformly manage and utilize this data. As the publishing of web databases has become one element of their usage, the fact that the metadata items differ has meant that we must create a separate database for each archive. However, given that the information registered in these databases all refer to cultural properties that the TNRICP has collected and organized, there is related information among the different databases and hence there would be increased value in being able to work with them as an entirety. Thus we have developed a TOBUNKEN Research Collections overall search system which allows lateral searches of numerous databases.
In general, there are two problems with the cross searching of multiple databases. First, the technical problem of how to realize cross-searching of multiple databases, and second, the question of data preferential ranking, in other words in what order should the results of the searches of multiple databases be displayed on the screen. The search results cannot be properly ordered in cases where multiple databases are searched and the user has not differentiated between databases of primary and secondary importance. The appropriate arrangement of the search results is not only dependent on the data contents but also on the user's goals, and it is extremely difficult for the system to predict and set those parameters.
The TOBUNKEN Research Collections program utilizes complex methods which prevent search omissions. Special search programs designed for each database conduct a simultaneous search. In addition, regarding the question of how to order the search results, we were able to avoid not being able to show accumulated search results from different databases and only be able to show results by database. This method effectively confirmed the distribution of related information across multiple databases. However, this does not mean that we are able to use the data comprehensively. Therefore we have developed a program that aggregates relevant information from multiple databases, using artists' names as the search target keywords. At present artist names are used as the keywords and thus it cannot gather database information that does not include names in its metadata. Our next task is to set non-name keywords.
The TNRICP researches cultural properties from various vantage points and gathers information on cultural properties. Hence if the research methods change, then the method of organizing the collected data also changes. Originally the information that could be handled comprehensively as information regarding cultural properties is scattered through the accumulation process. The TNRICP has now developed and deployed a database that can conduct cross searches and automatically accumulate related information. Hence in the future we will be able to combine these various pieces of cultural properties information and utilize them as a single cultural properties information source.journal articl
Topics of the Fourteenth Session of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage and Issues Raised through Discussions
Get PDFThe fourteenth session of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage was held from 9 to 14 December, 2019 in Bogotá, Republic of Colombia. During the session, 35 elements of intangible cultural heritage (ICH) were inscribed on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity (Representative List). In contrast, the Aalst Carnival (Belgium) was removed from the Representative List because the Committee considered it no longer satisfies the criteria R.1 and R.2. There was no objection from the Committee Members regarding the result, but necessity for establishment of clear procedures and criteria for removal of an element from a list was pointed out by the Committee for possible consideration of similar cases in the future.
“Provisional upstream dialogue” mechanism between the Evaluation Body and the States Parties concerned was introduced on an experimental basis for the evaluation of nominations in the 2019 cycle. The mechanism was applied to six nominations (two from the nomination to inscribe on the Urgent Safeguarding List, and four on the Representative List) by giving simple questions from the Evaluation Body to the States Parties concerned, and the body obtained preferable answers on all nominations. Many of the Committee Members, however, made complaints that the conditions to implement “upstream dialogue” was not so clear. They also inscribed six elements on the Lists to which “upstream dialogue” was not applied reversing the Evaluation Body’s recommendations.
In recent years, topics on the global reflection on the listing mechanisms of the Convention as well as follow-up on elements inscribed on the Lists of the Convention have been discussed at different occasions, such as the Committee meetings, working groups and expert meetings. It might be inevitable that the system of 2003 Convention was influenced by diplomacy and politics, as seen in the recent situation of the Intergovernmental Committee meetings. Even so, commitment of experts in various study fields of ICH should be necessary for above-mentioned discussions, for better implementation of the Convention by the communities. Nomination of elements should be process-oriented, not result-orienteddepartmental bulletin pape
Networking Core Centres for International Cooperation on Conservation of Cultural Heritage Project “Conservation and Utilisation of Historic Buildings in Bhutan” : Examination of Restoration Plan and Utilisation Plan of Farmhouses : Examination of Value Evaluation of Farmhouses as Cultural Heritage
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The Third Mayor’s Forum on Conservation of Historic Settlements in Kathmandu and Kavre Valley on 5 January 2020 at Kirtipur Municipality, Proceedings
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Investigation Report and Proposal of Rehabilitation Plan for the Aganchen Temple and Associated Buildings, Hanumandhoka Durbar Square, Kathmandu
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Investigation of Wall Paintings of Kitora Tumulus by X-ray Radiography
Get PDFAmong the twelve zodiac signs in the wall paintings of Kitora Tumulus, the signs of dragon, snake and monkey have not been discovered because they are covered with mud. In order to decide the treatments for restoration, it is important to identify the existence of those signs. Therefore, the authors conducted investigation by X-ray radiography.
In order to conduct the investigation of the wall paintings safely and efficiently, the conditions for X-ray radiography, for example the tube voltage, were determined in advance by checking the X-ray images of a test piece which reproduces the structure of the wall paintings.
As a result of the investigation by X-ray radiography, signs of snake and monkey could not be recognized in X-ray images. On the other hand, an image appeared at the location where the dragon was expected to be drawn. However, the obtained contrast of the X-ray image was opposite to expectation; the transmittance of X-ray around the image looked lower than that on the image. One of the possible reasons is the recrystallization of calcite on the surface of the plaster where no image was drawn.journal articl
How to Improve Japanese Local Cultural Property Information Findability with Linked Data - Applications for Local Artwork Searches
Get PDFIn April 2019 the Japanese government enacted its Law for the Protection of Cultural Properties and further encouraged the utilization of cultural properties in regional or local communities. However, in order to advance the utilization of cultural properties in regional or local communities -- for example, in school education, life-long learning, regional promotion or tourism promotion -- first it is essential to create a system whereby information about those cultural properties can be easily found. However, with the exception of those items designated as National Treasures or Important Cultural Properties by the Japanese government, such information is hard to locate.
At the same time, there is a movement in the field of digital technology to use a web technology known as linked data to semantically link globally scattered knowledge information. It is anticipated that this linked data methodology will improve the findability and usability of various kinds of data.
With the aim of supporting findability of information on cultural properties located in communities and regions (local community cultural property information), I have confirmed the core information on the lists of local government-designated or registered cultural properties found on the websites of the local governments who are primarily charged with the protection of cultural properties located in their region. I then applied this linked data approach to data from Tokyo Metropolitan District local governments as an example of this method.
In this approach I extracted the cultural properties-related metadata (name/title, category/type, date of designation/registration, place/location, owner/administrator, etc.) from the relevant websites and used the linked data method to combine it with other web resources. I then discussed the efficacy and issues of the system for supporting findability of local community cultural properties information constructed via this combination. I further considered the issues involved in applying this system to specific domains, and used art works as an example of such application.
I identified the following main efficacies of this system:
1) By focusing on the local government-designated or registered cultural properties information lists I was able to cross search data from different local governments to find local community cultural properties informations;
2) then I was able to combine the gathered and linked data-formatted local government-designated or registered cultural properties information lists with other linked data-format web resources,
3) and thereby find similar cultural properties in adjacent local government jurisdictions, along with relevant publications and websites.
We can anticipate that the cultural properties newly located through such results will allow even greater amounts of local community cultural properties information to be located.
In this study I was only able to examine a mere fraction of the information on the specific domain of art works among the various local community cultural properties types. The construction of portal sites such as Europeana and Japan Search which facilitate cross searches of broader arrays of cultural properties information has led to the realization of a world where it is possible to find massive amounts of cultural properties information online. It is imperative, however, to find methods whereby specific local community cultural properties information is not buried or obscured within that broader array. We can hope that Japanese regional and local providers of cultural properties information will pay attention to metadata attachment methods for individual cultural properties that will make it easier to find and utilize information. I believe that through these efforts by all we will be able to more effectively utilize local community cultural properties which have previously been buried under the avalanche of information online.journal articl