As a part of support efforts to recover from the Great East Japan Earthquake, the National Diet Library (NDL) started two-year conservation work on the “Yoshida-ke monjo,” which was designated as prefectural cultural property of Iwate and was damaged by the tsunami.

The “Yoshida-ke monjo” consists of the old documents which have been handed down in the Yoshida family, the hereditary village headman (Okimoiri) appointed by the feudal lord of Sendai. It includes a comprehensive collection of administrative records (Jodome) of the Edo and Meiji period and was stored in the special stack of the Rikuzentakata City Library in Iwate prefecture. This library was devastated by the tsunami, but most of the “Yoshida-ke monjo” fortunately survived and received first-aid treatment at the Iwate Prefectural Museum. However the ensuing investigation into its condition, in which the NDL staff took part, found severe damage such as corrosion of paper. Therefore, the NDL accepted a request from the Iwate Prefectural Board of Education to restore the “Yoshida-ke monjo”.

The documents are to be sent to the Tokyo Main Library divided into two groups. On October 1, 2012, the Preservation Division received the first delivery and has started working on removing mold and infilling the missing parts for their long-term availability as academic resources.

The NDL reports on the progress of operation on Facebook (Japanese only): http://www.facebook.com/yoshidakeshufuku

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