SAITAMA -- The Railway Museum in Omiya Ward, Saitama, is holding a special exhibition to commemorate the 120th anniversary of the introduction of dining cars in Japan.
Titled "Hashiru Resutoran -- Shokudosha no Monogatari," the exhibition features large illustrations and a selection of leaflets that used to be distributed on trains, shedding light on the history of dining cars from their introduction in Japan through to the present day.
The first thing visitors encounter at the entrance of the exhibition is a large illustration of the interior of Japan's first train dining car on the Sanyo Line, an express train line that ran on an about 500-kilometer section between Kyoto and Yamaguchi prefectures in 13 hours.
In the illustration, the carriage has a wood-paneled interior, reflecting an era when dining cars were typically the preserve of wealthy passengers. Men and women wearing kimono are seen seated around a table laid with white linen, on which an assortment of Western dishes have been served.
Hiro Inomata, 11, from Oyama, Tochigi Prefecture, said: "I was surprised to learn that coal was used for cooking in those days. I want to eat a meal in a dining car from that era."
Other illustrations show dining cars from different eras, including ones that were popular in the years soon after the end of World War II and in the 2000s.
Museum officials said their research for the exhibition utilized historical documents and records as well as interviews with people who worked in dining cars. The artists who created the illustrations based their designs on the work conducted by the museum officials.
The exhibition features about 70 leaflets that were distributed in dining cars until around 1955, when the use of public address announcement systems became widespread.
The leaflets, many of which include colorful illustrations, advertised menu items such as soda water, coffee and breakfast sets.
The exhibition also features models of three dining cars that were used mainly in the 1960s and 1970s, inside of which tables and chairs have been accurately reproduced.
The exhibition runs through Jan. 19 next year. For more information, call the museum at (048) 651-0088.
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