Reference number: M491

Year: AD 1916

Material: Bronze

Size: 60.2 x 60.5 x 4.7 mm

Weight: 115.65 g

Manufactured by: Shokosha Ltd.(Workshop of House of Peers)

Provenance: Private Collector, Taiwan 2026

This is a bronze commemorative medal established for the Taiwan Industrial Exhibition, also known as the Taiwan Industrial Mutual-Progress Fair.

The obverse of the medal features a central goddess of unknown origin, whose back bears a pair of wings unfurled into a perfect circle. Clad in a robe that is neither distinctively Western nor traditional Japanese, she holds an oil灯 (oil lamp) in both hands. The wavy lines flanking her hands represent sunlight, which likely aligns with symbols such as the oil lamp and the goddess to signify enlightenment and the transition into a civilised society. The architecture depicted at the bottom corresponds to the design of the Taihoku Prefectural Hall, and the inscription “S.HATA” in the bottom-right corner serves as the initials of the designer, Shōkō Hata. The rim of the medal is relatively wide, featuring two incised grooves on each side and distinct decorative patterns at the top and bottom.

The reverse features a central round dais inscribed with the emblem of the Taiwan Industrial Exhibition, a circular design integrating the Chinese characters “臺” (Tai) and “共” (Gong). The upper half of the inner circle is engraved with the seal script characters “Taishō Fifth Year” (AD 1916), while the lower half bears the inscription “Taiwan Industrial Exhibition”. The dais is encircled by a laurel wreath, surrounded by a comparatively wide rim.

Born in Toyama Prefecture, Shōkō Hata served as a professor at the Tokyo Fine Arts School (now the Tokyo University of the Arts) and the Tokyo Higher School of Arts and Crafts (now Chiba University). From AD 1907 to AD 1910, he travelled to France as an overseas commercial intern for the Ministry of Agriculture and Commerce, becoming the first Japanese sculptor to be admitted to the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris. In AD 1915, he was appointed as a technical consultant (Shokutaku) for the Japan Mint. In AD 1927, he assumed the position of Director of the Sculpture Research Institute. Although the institute was abolished in AD 1930, he continued to serve as a consultant until AD 1948. During this period, he also held a concurrent position as a consultant for the Bureau of Merit and Award. Shōkō Hata is widely celebrated as the maker of the “Order of Culture”; the existing bust of Director Hasegawa inside the Japan Mint headquarters in Osaka was executed under his expert guidance. The distinctive Art Deco style of this medal likely stems from the designer’s formative experiences at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris.

The edge of the commemorative medal is smooth, featuring a manufacturer’s mark stamped with “Shōkōsha”. Shōkōsha was established by Kamekichi Yamazaki, a prominent dealer in precious metals. Born in AD 1870 in Tokyo Prefecture to a commoner family, Yamazaki inherited the Shimizu Store from the Yamazaki family and progressively accumulated considerable wealth. In AD 1910, he established an educational workshop named “Shōkōsha Apprentice Supplementary Education Society”, which subsequently transitioned into an official industrial school. In AD 1918, he founded the “Shōkōsha Watch Research Institute”, venturing into watchmaking. In AD 1925, the institution introduced its brand, “Citizen”, which achieved immediate and widespread acclaim. By that year, as a primary taxpayer in Tokyo, Yamazaki was elected to the House of Peers as a representative of high-tax-paying citizens. In AD 1927, Shōkōsha collapsed due to financial mismanagement. In AD 1930, Yosaburo Nakajima and Ryoichi Suzuki, Japanese representatives for the Swiss watchmaker Schmid, acquired Shōkōsha, reorganising it into the Citizen Watch Co., Ltd., and invited Yamazaki to serve as Chairman of the Board.

AD 1916, the Taiwan Governor-General’s Office organized a grand celebration for the twentieth anniversary of its administration, launching the island’s first international exhibition, the “Taiwan Industrial Exhibition”. Against the backdrop of armed anti-Japanese resistance and localized conflicts with indigenous tribes during the 1910s, the event likely aimed to propagate the achievements of twenty years of colonial rule and position Taiwan as a strategic “base for the southward expansion”. The Governor-General’s Office and the Association for the Mutual Support of the Exhibition (Kyōsankai) fully mobilised society, utilising local administrative networks (Baojia), agricultural associations, and prominent local gentry to form an exhibition committee. They strictly gathered and reviewed over 60,000 domestic local products and external reference exhibits. Following precedents set since the Paris Exposition, a formal appraisal and evaluation system was implemented, under which five categories of awards were conferred, distributed as Honorary Prizes, Gold Medals, Silver Medals, Bronze Medals, and Certificates of Merit. Concurrently, a robust promotional campaign was executed through 52 newspaper outlets, including the Taiwan Nichinichi Shimpō, along with commemorative picture postcards and railway fare discounts, successfully drawing massive crowds. The exhibition space was divided into two grand venues. The first venue, situated in the newly constructed Taiwan Governor-General’s Office building—the symbolic epicentre of authority—displayed regional products and the administrative achievements of modernised government departments, whilst strategically placing exhibits from mainland Japan on the third floor to clearly delineate the hierarchy between the metropole and the colony. The second venue, hosted at the Forestry Experiment Station, adopted the style of a tropical amusement park. It featured specialized pavilions, including the South China and South Seas Pavilion, the Indigenous Peoples Pavilion and Tribal Huts illustrating the achievements of indigenous administration, and the Machinery Pavilion, alongside an aquarium in Keelung promoted as the premier facility of the Empire. Beyond the pavilions, public entertainment thrived with the introduction of Chinese Peking opera, spectacular illusionist magic performances by the Tenshō troupe, lottery draws, and masquerade parades. Local gentry spontaneously organized a combined grand procession featuring Mazu of Beigang and the Emperor Baosheng, seamlessly integrating the modern exposition with indigenous folk beliefs. This milestone event attracted inspections from Prince Kan’in Kotohito of Japan and official delegations from the Republic of China; due to the overwhelming public enthusiasm, the fair was extended by six days, ultimately drawing over 810,000 visitors throughout its 36-day run. Although the exhibition generated only a transient economic boom for urban businesses, it successfully showcased the milestones of modern development and laid a profound institutional foundation for the subsequent consolidation of Japanese corporate sugar capital, the rise of Taiwanese tourism, and the strategic expansion of the southward policy.

物件編號: M491

參考書目編號:

年代: 公元 1916 年

材質: 青銅

尺寸: 60.2 x 60.5 x 4.7 mm

重量: 115.65 g

製造地: 尚工舍

來源: 台灣私人收藏 2026

這是一枚為臺灣勸業共進會，又稱臺灣勸業博覽會，所設立的銅牌紀念獎章。

章體正面中央為一女神，未知來源，其背生雙翼但盤成正圓形。身著不洋不和的長袍，雙手捧著一個油燈。雙手左右二側的波浪狀線條代表陽光，可能與油燈、女神等符號一同象徵啟蒙與文明開化。下方建築物應為臺北州廳之圖案，右下角刻有「S.HATA」之字樣，應為設計師畑正吉的姓名縮寫。邊環較寬，左右各有二道溝狀陰刻，上下則有其他紋樣。

背面正中央圓檯刻有臺灣勸業共進會之標誌，以「臺」、「共」二字融合成之圓形圖案，其上環鐫篆書「大正五年」，其下方則環鐫「臺灣勸業共進會」之字樣。圓檯周圍環繞月桂葉冠，邊環較寬。

畑正吉於富山縣出身，曾任東京美術學校（今東京藝術大學）和東京高等工藝學校（今千葉大學）教授。公元1907年至1910年，他作為農商省的海外商務實習生前往法國，成為第一位被巴黎美術學院錄取的日本雕塑家。大正四年（公元1915年）獲聘為造幣局的囑託（技術顧問）；昭和二年（公元1927年）出任雕刻研究所所長。儘管該研究所於昭和五年遭到廢除，他仍繼續以囑託身份留任至昭和二十三年。在此期間，他也曾兼任賞勳局的囑託。畑正吉以身為「文化勳章」的製作者而聞名；目前現存於大阪造幣本局內的長谷川局長胸像，便是在他的指導之下製作完成的。本獎章帶有明顯的「裝飾藝術」風格，可能來自設計者的巴黎美院經歷。

紀念章章緣光平，有一處刻有製造商「尚工舍」。尚工舍為貴金屬商人山崎龜吉所設。山崎龜吉生於明治三年(公元1870年)的東京府，非貴族出生，繼承了山崎家的清水商店，逐漸累積財富。明治四十三年（公元1910年），成立了教育工坊「尚工舍徒弟補習教育會」，後轉正為工業學校。大正七年（公元1918年），成立「尚工舍時計研究所」，向鐘錶製造進軍，大正十四年（公元1925年）發表了品牌星辰錶（陸譯西鐵城，Citizen），一炮而紅。至該年，山崎龜吉作為東京的主要納稅人，當選為貴族院多額納稅者議員。昭和二年（公元1927年），尚工舍因經營不善而倒閉。昭和五年（公元1930年），瑞士鐘錶商施密特的日本代表中島與三郎和鈴木良一收購尚工舍，並重組為Citizen時計株式会社，並延請山崎龜吉任董事長。

大正五年（公元1916年），臺灣總督府第六任總督安東貞美，為慶祝始政二十週年，盛大籌辦全島首場國際性展覽「臺灣勸業共進會」。在公元1910年代武裝抗日與理蕃衝突的背景下，可能也有藉此宣揚二十年殖民治績的意圖，並將臺灣形塑為「南進基地」。總督府與協贊會全面動員，利用保甲、農會及地方仕紳等人籌組出品協會，嚴格募集並審查生產品與島外參考品，共集結高達六萬餘件展件。並延續巴黎博覽會以來的前例，進行品評制度，設五種褒賞，頒予名譽賞牌、金賞牌、銀賞牌、銅賞牌、獎狀。同時透過《臺灣日日新報》等52家報紙、紀念繪葉書及鐵路折扣全力宣傳，成功吸引四方人潮。展場分為兩大會場，第一會場設於象徵權力中心的新總督府廳舍，展示臺灣各廳物產與近代化官廳建設，並將日本本國展品置於三樓以區隔「內外位階」；第二會場設於林業試驗場，偏向熱帶遊樂地風格，設有南支南洋館、展示理蕃成果的番族館與番屋、機械館等主題館，並於基隆附設號稱帝國第一的水族館。場外則引入中國京劇、天勝奇術、彩券抽獎及化妝遊行，民間仕紳更自發舉辦北港媽祖與保生大帝合迎遶境，使博覽會與舊慣信仰巧妙結合。此盛會吸引日本閑院宮親王及中華民國官員前來考察，因場面熱絡而延期六天，36天會期內共湧入逾81萬人次。共進會雖僅帶來短暫的市街好景氣，卻成功展示了現代化成果，並為往後日本財團糖業資本集中、臺灣觀光事業及南進政策的擴張奠定了基礎。