With balmy March we are experiencing on the East Coast, Cherry Blossom season must be ahead of schedule.
As Washington D.C is having a city wide centennial celebration of the 1912 gift of Cherry trees from city of Tokyo to the U.S capital, the Library of Congress put together an exhibit titled Sakura: Cherry Blossoms as Living Symbols of Friendship which opened on March 20, 2012.
“In a century-old act of friendship that forever enriched the nation’s capital with sakura (cherry blossoms), the city of Tokyo gave 3,000 cherry trees to Washington, D.C., in 1912. Springtime viewing of the blooming trees that ring the Tidal Basin quickly became a cherished tradition and a signature cultural event in the United States capital.
The Library of Congress collections illuminate the story of these landmark trees, the historical significance of cherry blossoms in Japan, and their continuing resonance in American culture and for Washingtonians in particular. The exhibition features watercolor drawings of blossom varieties among the original trees, Japanese color woodblock prints and books, and an array of photographs as well as editorial cartoons, posters, and other printed ephemera.”
Shipping 3000 trees was surely quite a task a century ago.
The exhibit runs until September 15, 2012
You can check online gallery of items exhibited if you cannot make the trip to Washington D.C
Spring and Sakura in D.C for Tokyo Thursdays # 229
Previously:
(* Illustration is ‘Letter from Yei Theodora Ozaki to Mrs. William Howard Taft, February 26, 1911. Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (056.00.00)‘ from online gallery)