The Gathering In Berlin

[IanB]

On Saturday the 5th May some 50 or so enthusiasts from around the world, including Columbia, Australia, the US as well as from all over Europe, gathered at the Samurai -Arts Museum in Berlin for a day devoted to lectures on the arms and armour of the samurai. Among the speakers were Jan Pettersson, Ian Chapman, Anthony De Vos, Martyna Lesniewska, and myself on subjects as diverse as the introduction of the gun to Japan, the diversity of techniques and subject matter of swords fittings, an armour of the Uesugi family, helmets of the Bamen group and the armours of Kaga province. The generosity of Peter Janssen is legendary and true to form he fed and 'watered' everyone liberally throughout the day and was, as always, the perfect host. It was a pleasure, to re-acquainting myself with old friends and perhaps even more to meet so many young people with a passionate about Japanese arms and armour. My concerns about the demise of interest once the present generation of older enthusiasts pass on was firmly dismissed. Needless to say the festivities continued well into the night as a particular Vietnamese restaurant struggled manfully to maintain supplies of food and beverages.

 All in all a wonderful weekend that we hope will be repeated repeated in 2020 when it is planned to replace the formality of lectures with demonstrations by experts illustrating the skills involved in the production of Japanese arms and armour. 

Ian Bottomley

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[DaveT]

It was fantastic, and what a venue!