ABSTRACT
The final chapter explores the Meiji and Taishō gardens from a more theoretical perspective. It examines why these gardens were long excluded from national heritage lists but have recently been embraced with enthusiasm. The Agency for Cultural Affairs, which oversees heritage, has developed a new narrative that frames modernity as part of Japan’s cultural heritage. This approach allows modern buildings and sites to be integrated into redefined concepts of Japaneseness. A key focus is the portrayal of Japan as the origin of a unique, non-Western form of modernity, a narrative that has been applied to the gardens.
