Illustration of the Issuing of the State Constitution in the State Chamber of the New Imperial Palace

Adachi Ginkō

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

This triptych captures the ceremony for Japan’s first constitution, held at the imperial palace in Tokyo on February 11, 1889. At center, a minister presents the document to the Meiji emperor, who stands on a high dais decorated with sumptuous European and European-style fabrics. He is flanked by high ministers with a group of foreign diplomats to his left and the empress, seated on a low dais before members of her court, to his right. Based largely on Prussian models, the Meiji Constitution established Japan as a constitutional monarchy centered on a powerful emperor.

Asian Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The Met's collection of Asian art—more than 35,000 objects, ranging in date from the third millennium B.C. to the twenty-first century—is one of the largest and most comprehensive in the world. Each of the many civilizations of Asia is represented by outstanding works, providing an unrivaled experience of the artistic traditions of nearly half the world.

Metropolitan Museum of Art