Scroll Showcase: Daily Life in the 12th Century

Join Curator, Rare East Asian collection, Shiqiu Liu as she share insights into the 12th century “Scroll of Diseases and Deformities” (Yamai no sōshi), a work that depicts anecdotal scenes of several types of illness, and illuminates how people in the late Heian period Japan perceived these sufferings. The scroll highlights the attitudes of Heian Japanese people towards both rare and common types of illness, a perspective that differs from our present scientific analysis but offers debate and interpretations. Participants of the event are invited to speculate and discuss: Who were the intended viewers of this scroll?

The Rare East Asian Collection holds over 20,000 items ranging from the 17th to the 21st century, on topics such as history, literature, fine arts, traditional medicine, religion, linguistics, education, gender studies, politics, architecture, craft and design. It consists of books, scrolls, realia, stone rubbings, and ephemera.

This event forms part of the programming for Here Lives Our Culture, currently on display on Level 1, Baillieu Library until 15 June 2024. The next event in our Scroll Showcase series will be held on Tuesday 23 April at 12:30pm.