Manga
Description
Professor Tadakusu Munakata, a folklore professor at Toa Bunka University, travels across Japan and the world investigating the hidden historical truths concealed within myths, legends, and fairy tales. Rather than dismissing these stories as mere fantasy, Munakata believes they are often distorted records of real events. Using keen reasoning, deep knowledge of ancient iron culture and its transmission, and a willingness to conduct fieldwork in remote locations, he pieces together evidence from both the imaginary world of folklore and the tangible world of archaeology and history. Each story arc typically spans one to several chapters and brings him face to face with a new mystery rooted in local tradition.
The main character, Munakata, is a large, bald, mustached middle-aged man whose trademark appearance includes a bowler hat, a black cape, and a walking cane. He is a dedicated field researcher who thrives on examining historical sites, artifacts, and oral traditions. Among the recurring supporting cast is Imibe Kana, a sharp, short-haired historical researcher who first challenges Munakata with a bold theory about large numbers of Christians arriving in ancient Japan before the arrival of missionaries. Despite her initial rivalry, she frequently accompanies him on investigations. Other figures who appear across multiple stories include Munakata's niece Taki and an English woman named Isabella, each contributing to the narrative in ways that allow the side characters to develop more substantially than in the predecessor series.
The setting shifts regularly, ranging across the Japanese archipelago and occasionally abroad. In the opening arc, Munakata investigates the ancient tradition of female spirit mediums called itako in the Tohoku region, beginning in Aomori Prefecture. Later arcs take him to the Suwa region of Nagano to examine a giant Jōmon-era serpent deity statue, to the Dōjōji temple in Wakayama to unravel the legend of Anchin and Kiyohime, and to the Yamanashi and Niigata areas to explore tales of drifting great trees and the origins of masked visiting gods like Namahage. The series also expands overseas, with one notable arc set in the British Museum, where Munakata confronts an enemy trying to steal the museum's collection, a storyline that involves Napoleon Bonaparte and the threat of the destruction of St. Paul's Cathedral.
Notable narrative arcs include the investigation of the Sarutahiko deity, where Munakata examines the role of a guide god who descended from the heavens; the exploration of the lost island Uryujima in Beppu Bay; the connection between the Tale of the Bamboo Cutter and the Urashima legend; and a recurring focus on the history of ironworking in ancient Japan, a specialty of Munakata's research. The series is structured as a collection of self-contained mysteries, though later chapters show more interconnected storytelling and deeper exploration of Munakata's past. The manga received the Excellence Award at the 12th Japan Media Arts Festival in 2009, and in 2009 to 2010 it became the first Japanese manga original artwork to be exhibited at the British Museum in London.
The main character, Munakata, is a large, bald, mustached middle-aged man whose trademark appearance includes a bowler hat, a black cape, and a walking cane. He is a dedicated field researcher who thrives on examining historical sites, artifacts, and oral traditions. Among the recurring supporting cast is Imibe Kana, a sharp, short-haired historical researcher who first challenges Munakata with a bold theory about large numbers of Christians arriving in ancient Japan before the arrival of missionaries. Despite her initial rivalry, she frequently accompanies him on investigations. Other figures who appear across multiple stories include Munakata's niece Taki and an English woman named Isabella, each contributing to the narrative in ways that allow the side characters to develop more substantially than in the predecessor series.
The setting shifts regularly, ranging across the Japanese archipelago and occasionally abroad. In the opening arc, Munakata investigates the ancient tradition of female spirit mediums called itako in the Tohoku region, beginning in Aomori Prefecture. Later arcs take him to the Suwa region of Nagano to examine a giant Jōmon-era serpent deity statue, to the Dōjōji temple in Wakayama to unravel the legend of Anchin and Kiyohime, and to the Yamanashi and Niigata areas to explore tales of drifting great trees and the origins of masked visiting gods like Namahage. The series also expands overseas, with one notable arc set in the British Museum, where Munakata confronts an enemy trying to steal the museum's collection, a storyline that involves Napoleon Bonaparte and the threat of the destruction of St. Paul's Cathedral.
Notable narrative arcs include the investigation of the Sarutahiko deity, where Munakata examines the role of a guide god who descended from the heavens; the exploration of the lost island Uryujima in Beppu Bay; the connection between the Tale of the Bamboo Cutter and the Urashima legend; and a recurring focus on the history of ironworking in ancient Japan, a specialty of Munakata's research. The series is structured as a collection of self-contained mysteries, though later chapters show more interconnected storytelling and deeper exploration of Munakata's past. The manga received the Excellence Award at the 12th Japan Media Arts Festival in 2009, and in 2009 to 2010 it became the first Japanese manga original artwork to be exhibited at the British Museum in London.
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