70th Anniversary Commemorative Exhibit "A Treasure Box of Books - The 70-year History of the National Diet Library and Its Collections"

  • A Treasure Box of Books
  • Part 2 Diverse Collections
  • Chapter 3 Books depicting society of the day
  • Section 1 The postwar recovery era

Part 2 Chapter 3 Section 1 The postwar recovery era

This section mainly consists of exhibits revolving around the postwar recovery era. Among these are included a variety of collections gathered by the National Diet Library, such as photographs taken by Robert V. Mosier including color photos from around 1946 to 1947, and minutes of meetings regarding Japan joining the United Nations.

106 Photographs taken by Robert V. Mosier photographs by Robert V. Mosier, 1946-1947

This is a collection of photos taken from April 1946 to January 1947 by Robert Mosier, who stayed in Japan as part of the GHQ civilian staff. The collection is composed of 304 color photographs of town scenery and buildings taken in various areas of Japan including Tokyo, Nagoya, and Hiroshima. The photos were donated in 2008 by a relative of Mosier living in the United States and were then digitized by the National Diet Library. They were released as part of the National Diet Library Digital Collection in 2017.


Tokyo PX (Matsuya Honten)
*PX: Post Exchange, a store for occupation forcesDigital Collections

Genbaku Domu (Atomic Bomb Dome) (originally the Hiroshima Prefectural Industrial Promotion Hall) and burned out ruinsDigital Collections

Street stalls and movie advertisement billboardsDigital Collections

Kyoto City HallDigital Collections

Imperial Japanese Army General Staff Office burnt ruins *Currently the Parliamentary MuseumDigital Collections

107 Kimitachi wa dou ikiru ka by YOSHINO Genzaburo, illustrated by WAKITA Kazu, Shinchosha, 1949 [児 15-Y-1]

Held by the Gordon W. Prange Collection, University of Maryland Libraries

This is a novel written in 1937 by Yoshino Genzaburo, who was the first editor in chief of the magazine Sekai (Iwanami Shoten). It was originally written as a volume of the Nihon Sho Kokumin Bunko edited by novelist Yamamoto Yuzo, and was published as a joint work with the inclusion of an essay by Yamamoto. The exhibited material is the version from which it began being published as the solitary work of Yoshino.

Materials on the Allied Occupation of Japan - Gordon W. Prange Collection, University of Maryland Libraries

Since 1978, National Diet Library staff have been stationed in the United States to copy and collect Materials on the Allied Occupation of Japan (at first using microfiche, and currently through digitization). As a result, these materials can now be used from within Japan.
Among these materials, the Gordon W. Prange Collection of the University of Maryland Libraries consists of materials which were collected within Japan by the General Headquarters of the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers (GHQ/SCAP) after the end of World War II for censorship as part of the Japan occupation policy. Gordon W. Prange, the Chief Historian of the Historical Branch of the Intelligence Section of the Allied Forces, saw the historical value of these materials and transferred control of the materials to the University of Maryland. The National Diet Library has, since 1992, worked together with the university to duplicate and collect these materials.

108 13th Diet House of Councillors Minutes No. 47 edited by Sangiin Jimukyoku, June 4, 1952 [BZ-6-22]

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The displayed section is the "Appeal for approval of participation in the United Nations" approved in the June 4, 1952 House of Councillors plenary session. Japan then applied for membership in the United Nations on the 23rd of the month, however at the United Nations Security Council on September 18 that year the Soviet Union exercised its veto power and Japan's membership application was rejected.

Full-text Database System for the Minutes of the Diet and Index to Japanese Laws and Regulations in Force

The Full-text Database System for the Minutes of the Diet provides data on the minutes of all full sessions of the Diet and committees since the first Diet session in 1947. In addition to being able to search proceedings by speaker, speech content, and other factors, all text can also be viewed as images. The system is jointly operated by the House of Representatives, House of Councillors, and National Diet Library.
The Index to Japanese Laws and Regulations in Force includes all reform and abolition processes for laws established since the Kobunshiki (Imperial Edict No. 1 of 1886) (imperial edict which served as the foundation for the current legal system) to the present, as well as bills submitted to the Imperial Diet and the Diet, deliberations on treaty ratification conditions, and more. It also provides links to the full text of laws provided on the websites of government agencies.

109 United Nations, Official Records of the General Assembly, Eleventh Session, Plenary Meeting, 623rd Meeting, December 18, 1956 [United Nations Document Number A/PV.623]

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As one of the 14 United Nations Depository Libraries in Japan, the National Diet Library fulfills an important role of providing access to United Nations information to the Diet, the government, the judicial branch, and the people. The displayed section is the minutes of the General Assembly of the United Nations from December 18, 1956 during which Japan's admission into the United Nations was approved.

110 Ведомости Верховного Совета СССР 1956 No. 24 (No. 866), December 21, 1956 [CR5-2-1]

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This is an official report from the Supreme Soviet of the USSR, the only legislative body of the former Soviet Union and its highest national authority. The exhibited section is the Japan-Soviet Joint Declaration effectuated on December 12, 1956. This declaration ended the state of war between Japan and the Soviet Union and included a pledge for the Soviet Union to support Japan's entry into the United Nations, which allowed for Japan's successful entry.

111 Koho, 1958 Special No. 53 edited by Ryukyu seifu gyosei shuseki kanbo bunshoka, Ryukyu seifu gyosei shuseki kanbo, September 15, 1958 [CR7-2-1]

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This is an official report from the Government of the Ryukyu Islands, which was the resident governing body under the U.S. military occupation. The displayed section is a proclamation issued by the United States Civil Administration of the Ryukyu Islands (USCAR), which was the U.S. military government of Okinawa. From 1948 onward, the B yen, a military scrip issued by the United States military, was the only legal currency in Okinawa, however this proclamation made the U.S. dollar the only legal currency.

112 Yusei Koho, No. 2616, Yuseisho, October 24, 1961 [CZ-491-1]

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This is a bulletin from the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications, which had control over operation of the postal service until December 2000. The displayed section is Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications Notice No. 725, on the issuance of stamps commemorating the opening of the National Diet Library main building. In addition, Bulletin No. 2618 from the 27th of the same month also announces the use of special stamps commemorating the date of the opening of the National Diet Library main building.