Coming soon: Light over Deshima

24 September 2026 - 28 February 2027

In the former home of Philipp Franz von Siebold, who played a key role in the exchange of knowledge between Japan and the Netherlands, Light over Deshima invites visitors to discover the earliest photographs of Japan. The exhibition explores how Dutch and Japanese scholars, physicians, and photographers came together on Deshima in the mid-nineteenth century, and how photography became an invaluable means of documenting a society in transition.

The exhibition and the accompanying publication are the result of a special collaboration between Leiden University Libraries, Nagasaki University Library, Japan Museum SieboldHuis, and a number of museums and photographic collections in the Netherlands and Japan.

Light over Deshima is on view at Japan Museum SieboldHuis from 24 September 2026 to 28 February 2027. Subscribe to our newsletter or follow us on our website and social media for the latest news, upcoming events, and a sneak peek behind the scenes.

Ships before the coast of Nagasaki, 1863-65. Collection Leiden University Libraries.

How did photography reach Japan in the nineteenth century?

Light over Deshima tells the story of the introduction of photography to Japan and the unique role the Dutch played in its arrival. At a time when Japan was largely closed to the outside world, Deshima, the Dutch trading post in Nagasaki, served as the country's only gateway to Europe. Through this small island, the first cameras, photographic techniques, and instruction manuals found their way to Japan.

The exhibition traces the earliest decades of photography in Japan through rare photographs from Dutch and Japanese collections. Portraits, family scenes, street views, and landscapes not only show the development of photography, but also reveal what everyday life in Japan looked like during a period of change.

At the heart of the exhibition are photographs made before 1870, when Japan was gradually opening up to the outside world. This photography is extremely fragile, which is why the images are presented in this exhibition as new exhibition prints. Bringing also advantages, as almost all early photographs are contained in albums, it allows us to show many more images from each album. Also, the sometimes very small nineteenth-century photographs have been enlarged, making them in some cases even easier to view. Vintage prints (original photographs) will, however, feature in the exhibition’s public programme!

Book and activities

A book entitled Licht over Deshima will be published to accompany the exhibition, edited by Akiyoshi Tani, a specialist in photography at the University of Tokyo, and Maartje van den Heuvel, curator of Photography at Leiden University and guest curator of Licht over Deshima. The book presents insights from the latest research into early Japanese photography and will be published in Dutch, Japanese and English. In addition, our programme of events offers visitors the opportunity to explore the history of early photography in Japan in greater depth.

Ueno Hikoma (attr.), Two sisters and a brother, 1863-1864. Leiden University Libraries, Kok Album.

Ueno Hikoma, Self portrait, 1863-1864. Leiden University Libraries, Kok Album.