Speaker
William H. Coaldrake MVO (Department of Architecture, The University of Tokyo )

About the Talk

The Taitokuin Mausoleum was built at the Tokugawa family temple of Zōjōji in 1632 to 1634 to house the mortal remains and reborn spirit of the second shogun Tokugawa Hidetada (1579-1632). Tragically it was almost entirely destroyed by incendiary bombing in 1945. If it had survived to today it would undoubtedly have become a World Heritage site because of its architectural and artistic significance. A replica model was however made by Japan’s leading architects, carpenters, artists and artisans at Tōkyō Bijutsu Gakkō (now Tokyo University of the Arts) for display in 1910 at the Japan-British Exhibition at White City, Shepherd’s Bush. It was then presented to King George V, thereby becoming part of the Royal Collection.

The model was to be displayed for nearly fifty years in the Orangery at Kew Royal Botanical Gardens before being dismantled and placed in storage in 1958 where it disappeared from sight until the early 1990s. Both the mausoleum and the model faded from memory, forgotten by the public and eclipsed in scholarship by the Nikkō Tōshōgū. In fact the Nikkō shrine, founded after Ieyasu’s death in 1616, was rebuilt two years after the Taitokuin Mausoleum by the same people as had constructed the Taitokuin Mausoleum. It was similar architecturally and artistically, as Coaldrake’s 1983 doctoral dissertation for Professor John Rosenfield at Harvard had made clear.

What Coaldrake did not know when he finished his doctorate was that the 1910 model, one-tenth in size but every bit as spectacular as its larger progenitor, had survived in storage. With its rediscovery in the 1990s and subsequent restoration and long-term loan to Zōjōji, where the original mausoleum had once stood, the historical memory of the Taitokuin Mausoleum and its smaller surrogate has been reborn.

Related NHK Programme on 16 September 2026
The day before this lecture NHK in Japan will broadcast a 45 minute documentary about the Taitokuin Mausoleum and the Royal Collection Model. It will include interviews with William Coaldrake and a CG reconstruction of the original buildings that he supervised.

Broadcast Details: Rekishi Tantei (“History Detective”) Series. Tokyo’s “Forgotten World Heritage Site”: A Tokugawa Family Mausoleum (in Japanese only). First broadcast: NHK-G. 16 September 2026 (Wednesday) at 22.00-22.45 (Japan Standard Time). Rebroadcast: NHK-G. 21 September (Monday) 23:50-24.35 (Japan Standard Time) [broadcast times may be subject to last minute changes due to unforeseen circumstances].

It will also be broadcast simultaneously on NHK World Premium on 16 September. Please note: This is the Japanese language subscription world service, not to be confused with the English language NHK World

NHK　G総合テレビ
『歴史探偵』.　東京”幻の世界遺産” 徳川家霊廟 （初放送9月16日（水) 22.00-22.45（日本時間）同時にNHK ワールドプレミアム 再放送9月21日（月) 23.50-24.35（日本時間）