The Tale of Genji Exhibition Under Way at the Kyoto National Museum, Touring to the Tokyo National Museum: Display Periods for the National Treasure Scrolls and Venue-Exclusive Works

The special exhibition “The Tale of Genji: The Radiance of the Court,” organized by the Kyoto National Museum and others, is being held at the museum’s Heisei Chishinkan Wing. It runs from Tuesday, October 6 to Sunday, November 29, 2026. From Tuesday, January 19 to Sunday, March 14, 2027, it tours to the Heiseikan of the Tokyo National Museum. The exhibition brings together paintings and crafts depicting scenes and motifs from “The Tale of Genji,” written by Murasaki Shikibu, and also introduces manuscripts and commentaries and the tale’s spread into the performing arts and popular culture.

Highlights of the Tale of Genji exhibition

The organizers describe this as the first Tale of Genji exhibition at the Kyoto National Museum in about 50 years and the first ever at the Tokyo National Museum. Each museum organizes it with Nikkei Inc., NHK and others, with the Kyoto venue including displays centered on Noh and the Tokyo venue displays centered on ukiyo-e.

At its center is the National Treasure “Tale of Genji Scrolls,” which the organizers introduce as “the oldest surviving work depicting The Tale of Genji.” At the Kyoto venue, the scene on display changes every two weeks. Works returning from overseas are also among the highlights: at the Kyoto venue, the “Tale of Genji Album” by Tosa Mitsunobu, in the collection of the Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum in the United States, is shown throughout.

When can the National Treasure “Tale of Genji Scrolls” be seen?

The scenes of the National Treasure “Tale of Genji Scrolls” shown at the Kyoto venue and their periods are as follows. All are shown at the Kyoto venue only.

• “Kashiwagi I” (Tokugawa Art Museum, Aichi): October 6–18 (display ended)

• “Suzumushi II” (Gotoh Museum, Tokyo): October 20 – November 1

• “Hashihime” (Tokugawa Art Museum, Aichi): November 3–15

• “Yadorigi III” (Tokugawa Art Museum, Aichi): November 17–29

The organizers also say that, for the first time in history, all five extant volumes of “The Tale of Genji (Teika manuscript)” are brought together. All five volumes are on view together only for the two weeks from November 3 to 15, and only at the Kyoto venue. This period also overlaps with the display of “Hashihime” from the National Treasure scrolls.

Among the works at the Tokyo venue, the National Treasure “Tale of Genji Scrolls: Kashiwagi III” (Tokugawa Art Museum, Aichi) is featured. Its display period is not given on the official website.

Main works and venue-exclusive works

The Kyoto venue is structured from Chapter 1, “Copying The Tale of Genji,” to the final chapter, “Carrying On Painting The Tale of Genji,” with a topic section on “The Tale of Genji and Noh.” There is also a display re-creating the stage of “Genji Noh” using restored Noh costumes, showing “Aoi no Ue” in the first period and “Tamakazura” in the second. The main works are as follows (as given on the official website).

• National Treasure “Sekiya and Miotsukushi Screens from The Tale of Genji (Miotsukushi)” by Tawaraya Sotatsu, Seikado Bunko Art Museum, Tokyo (first period)

• National Treasure “Incense Box with Uji Design, from the Hatsune Furnishings” by Koami Nagashige, Tokugawa Art Museum, Aichi (throughout, Kyoto venue only)

• Important Cultural Property “Tale of Genji Album” by Tosa Mitsuyoshi and Chojiro, Kyoto National Museum (throughout, Kyoto venue only; “Wakamurasaki” in the first period)

• Important Cultural Property “Noh Mask: Deigan,” handed down in the Konparu family, Tokyo National Museum (throughout, Kyoto venue only)

• “Portrait of Murasaki Shikibu” by Tosa Mitsuoki, Ishiyama-dera, Shiga (first period)

• “The Carriage Quarrel” screen (right) by Tosa Mitsushige, Ninna-ji, Kyoto (first period)

• “Princesses of the Uji Palace” (right screen) by Matsuoka Eikyu, Himeji City Museum of Art, Hyogo (throughout, Kyoto venue only)

At the Tokyo venue, the first period runs from Tuesday, January 19 to Sunday, February 14, and the second from Tuesday, February 16 to Sunday, March 14. The works introduced include Katsukawa Shunsho’s “Beauty with a Kitten” (first period), the Important Cultural Property “Snow, Moon and Flowers (Moon)” by Katsukawa Shunsho (second period) and Uemura Shoen’s “Flame” (throughout). The “Tale of Genji Screens” attributed to Tosa Mitsuzane, restored through crowdfunding, will reportedly be shown to the public for the first time at the Tokyo venue.

Tickets, and how to avoid crowds

Admission at the Kyoto venue is 2,200 yen for adults, 1,200 yen for university students and 700 yen for high school students, and free for junior high school students and younger (proof required). Advance ticket sales ended on Monday, October 5. The official website makes no mention of timed entry or reservations, and congestion information for the Kyoto venue is posted on X (@KNM_updates).

The Kyoto venue is open until 20:00 on Fridays only. The first period runs until Sunday, November 1 and the second from Tuesday, November 3 (national holiday), and some works are also changed at other times. To see works shown only in the first period, such as Sotatsu’s National Treasure screens, visit by November 1.

Admission at the Tokyo venue is 2,400 yen for adults, 1,300 yen for university students and 900 yen for high school students. Early-bird advance tickets (adults 2,000 yen, etc.) are on sale until 23:59 on Monday, October 19. From 10:00 on Tuesday, October 20, advance tickets (adults 2,200 yen, etc.) are on sale until 23:59 on Monday, January 18, 2027. No advance reservation is required, and the TNM Collection exhibitions can also be seen on the day of the visit.

As for evening openings at the Tokyo venue, the exhibition’s official website says it is open until 20:00 every Friday and Saturday, while the Tokyo National Museum’s page says this is “under consideration,” so check before visiting. The audio guide navigator is actor Akihisa Shiono, who played Emperor Ichijo in the NHK taiga drama “Dear Radiance.” Rental at the venue costs 700 yen, and the app version 800 yen.

Editor’s perspective

Even under the same exhibition title, the scenes from the National Treasure scrolls and the venue-exclusive works differ between Kyoto and Tokyo. With Noh as the axis in Kyoto and ukiyo-e in Tokyo, it is realistic to plan the two venues as separate exhibitions.

If you can visit Kyoto only once, November 3 to 15, when “Hashihime” and all five volumes of the Teika manuscript are on view together, is one guideline. In Kyoto in the same period, “Zen and Ghibli” is on at the Kyoto City KYOCERA Museum of Art, and the “78th Annual Exhibition of Shosoin Treasures” began on October 24 at the Nara National Museum. Autumn exhibitions in Kansai are summarized in our guide to exhibitions in Kyoto, Osaka, Nara and Hyogo.

Overview

Name: Special Exhibition “The Tale of Genji: The Radiance of the Court”
Dates and venues: Kyoto venue: Tuesday, October 6 – Sunday, November 29, 2026, Kyoto National Museum, Heisei Chishinkan Wing (first period: Tuesday, October 6 – Sunday, November 1; second period: Tuesday, November 3 (national holiday) – Sunday, November 29) / Tokyo venue: Tuesday, January 19 – Sunday, March 14, 2027, Tokyo National Museum, Heiseikan (first period: Tuesday, January 19 – Sunday, February 14; second period: Tuesday, February 16 – Sunday, March 14)
Hours: Kyoto venue: 9:00–17:30 (until 20:00 on Fridays) / Tokyo venue: 9:30–17:00 (until 20:00 every Friday and Saturday according to the exhibition’s official website). Last admission 30 minutes before closing at both
Closed: Kyoto venue: Mondays, Tuesday, October 13 and Tuesday, November 24 (open on Monday, October 12 (national holiday) and Monday, November 23 (national holiday)) / Tokyo venue: Mondays (open on Monday, February 22)
Address: Kyoto venue: 527 Chayamachi, Higashiyama-ku, Kyoto / Tokyo venue: 13-9 Ueno Park, Taito-ku, Tokyo
Admission: Kyoto venue: adults 2,200 yen, university students 1,200 yen, high school students 700 yen / Tokyo venue: adults 2,400 yen, university students 1,300 yen, high school students 900 yen (advance: adults 2,200 yen, university students 1,100 yen, high school students 700 yen). Free for junior high school students and younger at both
Organizers: Kyoto venue: Kyoto National Museum, Nikkei Inc., NHK Kyoto, NHK Enterprises Kinki / Tokyo venue: Tokyo National Museum, Nikkei Inc., NHK, NHK Promotions
Official website: https://genjiten.jp/
*Information as of October 19, 2026. Please check the official website for the latest information.

*Top image: Tale of Genji Scrolls (Moriyasu version), “Aoi” (detail), Edo period, 17th century, Kyoto National Museum (from a press release by Momotani Juntenkan Ltd.)

*This article was compiled by the TOKYO ART SPHERE editorial team based on information on the official websites of the organizers, including the Kyoto National Museum and the Tokyo National Museum (as of October 19, 2026).

Text: TOKYO ART SPHERE Editorial Team