Specialist Tour: The Silk Road between Japan and Glasgow
Join Dr Yupin Chung, Curator of East Asian Art, on Tuesday 5th of May for a special tour looking at exquisite items from the 1878 Japanese Government Gift, including the fabulous collection of silk!
About Specialist Tour: The Silk Road between Japan and Glasgow
| 5th May 2026 | |
| 2.30-3.30pm | |
|
Glasgow Museums Resource Centre 200 Woodhead Road, Glasgow South Side G53 7NN |
|
| Free but booking required | |
| Event organiser/part of Glasgow Museums |
The Vienna World’s Fair of 1873 introduced Europeans to a new pure silk fabric.
A year earlier, in 1872, the Meiji government established the Tomioka Silk Mill, one of Japan’s first modern silk reeling factories. The Tomioka silk it produced impressed audiences at the World Fair, and the name “Tomioka silk” quickly spread throughout Europe.
A Japanese gift to Glasgow included a sample of the raw silk from the new factory.
Today, the Tomioka Silk Mill is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The Textile industry was one of the first to be mechanised in Japan, with changes staggered during the Meiji era (1868-1912), deliberately modifying the production of different silk fibres.
At the time, Nishijin-ori artisans responded rapidly. In 1872, the Kyoto Prefecture government sent three weavers to Lyon, France, to acquire pioneering techniques and knowledge. Upon their return, they introduced the Jacquard loom to Japan for the first time. Woven textiles produced in the Nishijin area of Kyoto are known as Nishijin-ori. They feature brilliantly dyed silk interwoven with lavish gold and silver threads into complex patterns.
Join Dr Yupin Chung, Curator of East Asian Art, for a special tour looking at exquisite items from the 1878 Japanese Government Gift, including our fabulous collection of silk.
FREE but limited to 15 spaces. Book your place by emailing glmuseumsadminbookingshub@glasgowlife.org.uk with the name and date of the tour you would like to attend.
Image: Detail of silk brocade, Kyoto, Japan 1878.169.fv © CSG CIC Glasgow Museums Collection
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