４月１日（土曜日）２０２３
１９９３年に多賀町で化石となった象の1個体の骨が次々に発見されました。それは４５０万年前に大陸からやってきたアケボノゾウの祖先がその後大陸から切り離されて島となった日本の環境に適応し約１８０万年前に生息していたであろうアケボノゾウと言われています。アケボノゾウの化石は国内の様々な箇所で発見されているそうですが、多賀で産出された骨の数は群を抜いて多く保存状態もよいことから、昨年国の天然記念物に指定されました。それを祝って「シガタガゾウのアート展」が多賀町立博物館で開催され、そのために平面・立体、画像などアケボノゾウに関連したさまざまの作品２００点余りが地元のみならず県外からも海外からも応募があったそうです。
職場が多賀の会社で行き帰りに、よくカフェに顔を出してくれる２０代の小野隆久さんもアケボノゾウの復元立体を出展しました。出展にあたって、アケボノゾウに関係する様々な資料や学術論文を読んだり、博物館の学芸員の人に疑問点を聞いたりして骨だけの化石から当時のアケボノゾウの姿をミニチュア像として再現しようと日々試行錯誤しながら努力している姿を私は何ヶ月も前から見ていました。
沢山の平面絵画や思いがけない発想の芸術的な作品が圧倒的に多い中で、小野さんの作品は一見地味に見えますが、足裏の形状や牙を支える筋肉のつき方、背骨の曲がり具合など細部まで調べ上げて、カフェに寄っては途中経過を熱心に話してくれていました。
上位入賞は芸術面の方が獲得なさり素晴らしいと思いましたが、私は小野さんが再現したアケボノゾウに大賞を上げたいと心から思っています。
Fossil bones of the ancient elephant were excavated one after another in Taga in 1993. Scholars said that they were the bones of Akebono-zoh (Stegodon aurorae) whose ancestor came from Asian Continent 450 million years ago and after separating Japan from Asian continent, Stegodon aurorae adapted to the environment of Japan Island and lived about 180 million years ago. Stegodon aurorae's fossil bones were excavated in several places in Japan, but the numbers of the bones in Taga were the most numerous and kept in good condition. Therefore, the Ministry of Education of Japan announced last year that they decided to designate them as a national natural monument. Celebrating the decision, Taga town museum held an exhibition related to the Stegodon aurorae named "Art exhibition of Stegodon aurorae" from March 18th to April 9th in 2023. More than 200 applicants submitted their work which were two-dimensional figures such as paintings, wood prints,etc., three-dimensional works or video works for the exhibition. I also heard that those applicants were not only local people but also from all over Japan, or even from overseas.
Mr. Ono who is in his twenties working at the company in Taga and often stops by my cafe, submitted his work which was the miniature restoration of the Stegodon aurorae. Over the past several months, he read many related documents and academic papers and he often went to the curator of the museum to ask his questions in order to make it as real as possible.
There were so many two dimensional works and artistic works which were amazing, and Oho's work looked rather humble but he researched the shape of the sole of the Stegodon aurorae, how to build muscle which supported his fangs, the shape of back bone, or other detailed parts and talked about the process to me enthusiastically in my cafe.
The works of the higher-ranking winner were all very artistic and wonderful but I would like to give a grand prize to Ono's miniature Stegodon aurorae.
