This autumn there will be an unprecedented opportunity to come and see some of the earliest human forms from Japan at the British Museum. The power of dogu: ceramic figures from ancient Japan, will present some 70 of these mysterious and evocative objects from the Jomon period of Japanese prehistory (c. 14,000 - 300 BC), with most of the exhibits dating to between five thousand and two thousand years ago. Highlights include three National Treasures.The remarkable ¡Æpraying¡Ç dogu from Kazahari I in Aomori prefecture, which was designated a National treasure just this year. From Hokkaido is a hollow Jomon figure from Chobonaino, one of the largest examples found, with exquisitely modelled features and fine decoration, which was also on display during the G8 Summit at Lake Toyako in 2008. From central Japan are two stunning figures from the Togariishi Jomon Archaeological Museum, the so-called ¡ÆVenus¡Ç of Tanabatake, designated a National Treasure in 1995, and a striking masked figure from Nakappara. This is the first time many of these artefacts have been exhibited together anywhere, and the first time most of them have been outside Japan.

The exhibition explores a number of themes, including the development of dogu from their appearance over 10,000 years ago to their demise with the appearance of rice-agriculture and metalworking in the Japanese archipelago over 2000 years ago. While many dogu are based on the human form, there are also many examples of animals. The exhibition also includes a series of ceramic vessels with dogu-inspired motifs. Many of the dogu seem animated, their expressive faces and deliberate poses giving a lively insight into the creativity of the ancient Jomon populations of Japan. The exhibition and catalogue explore the history of discovery of dogu from the Edo period onwards, including a special connection with the British Museum, in the late 1880s a favourite haunt of the great Japanese pioneer of archaeology, Tsuboi Shogoro of the University of Tokyo.

Since their rediscovery, dogu have inspired many generations of Japanese artists, and now feature in manga including Ankoku Shinwa (Myth of Darkness) by Morohoshi Daijiro and Munakata kyoju ikoroku (Case Records of Professor Munakata by Hoshino Yukinobu. Examples and original drawings from dogu-related manga are in show in the Mitsubishi Corporation Japanese Galleries in conjunction with The power of dogu.

The exhibition, sponsored by the Mitsubishi Corporation, is organised by the British Museum, the Agency for Cultural Affairs and the Tokyo National Museum. It forms part of a research project based at the Sainsbury Institute for the Study of Japanese Arts and Cultures supported by the Arts and Humanities Research Council. The exhibition is accompanied by a comprehensive catalogue and a series of lunchtime gallery talks. An international public conference Dogu: ancient art and modern inspiration, sponsored by the Japan Foundation, will be held at the British Museum on Saturday 7 November 2009. A second exhibition arising from the research project, entitled unearthed, will be held at the Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts at the University of East Anglia in Norwich from mid-June to August 2010, in which a different selection of Jomon dogu will be exhibited alongside prehistoric European ceramic figurines.

Dr Simon Kaner

Assistant Director

Sainsbury Institute for the Study of Japanese Arts and Cultures