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Ghibli Museum (Japan)

Last modified: 2008-03-22 by phil nelson
Keywords: ghibli museum | boar head | tree | hawks | totoro | katakana: i | mitaka |
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Armorial
Ghibli Museum armorial image contributed by J. Patrick Fischer, 26 January 2008

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At flickr.com, there is a photo of a flag labeled "Ghibli Museum", taken in Tokyo. The flag has a yellow and black crenellated border (dark yellow at the hoist), the background being white with what seems to be a European 19th style coat of arms with branching leaf-like ornaments.

The flag is also shown elsewhere on flickr.com labeled "sora in Tokyo".
António Martins-Tuválkin, 24 January 2008


It is the flag of a museum attached to the Ghibli animation studio, a very renowned one. (Makers of "Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind."
Eugene Ipavec, 24 January 2008


Ghibli is famous for Spirited Away (Sen to Chihiro no Kamikakushi), which won the Academy Award and the Golden Bear.

The small coat of arms shows Totoro, the main character of the 1988-movie "My Neighbour Totoro" (Tonari no Totoro).

The big coat of arms shows in the first field three eagles (hawks) on three vertical stripes, red white red. The second field shows a standing boar and the red Chinese letter "ren" which means "human" on a gold field. The third field shows Totoro by a big tree, where he lives. on a sky blue field. On the top is a banner with the inscription "Ghibli Museum" and again Totoro. On the bottom is a oak bough.
J. Patrick Fischer, 25 January 2008


The red character is actually the Japanese letter (Katakana script) "I".

The three eagles refer to the City of Mitaka (literally "Three Hawks"), where the Ghibli Museum is located. Likewise the large coat of arms has the word "Ghibli Museum" flanked by "Mitaka" and "Mori", a reference to the full name of the museum, "Mitaka no Mori Jiburi Bijutsukan" ("Ghibli Museum at the Forest of Three Hawks").

See Wikipedia: Ghibli Museum for more details.
Miles Li, 27 January 2008


The emblem was designed by Mr. Goro Miyazaki former Director of the Museum in 2001.

The three birds in the 1st quarter in the shield are hawks.

The animal in the second quarter is a boar and Katakana put in its head is I of イノシシ meaning a boar. A head is Kashira カシラ in Japanese Katakana.

The museum is located in I no kashira (Boar's Head Park) in Mitaka ( 三鷹 which means three hawks) city, in Tokyo.

Totoro is under a big tree and the animal behind the shield is a wildcat which is nothing to do with Hayao's animation.
Nozomi Kariyasu, 30 January 2008