It is not easy to overstate the cataclysmic effects of the run-up to the implementation of the Meiji 'Restoration' in Japan in 1868. The changes affected every aspect of Japanese life; a new sense of a single nation, as opposed to a series of regional loyalties, was created. The word Meiji means 'enlightened government' and the new government had as a primary aim the bringing of Japan into the group of modern western industrial powers. One of the ways the government decided to do this was to demonstrate to the world the brilliance of Japanese craftsmanship. New techniques, such as cloisonné enamel began to be developed for the first time in Japan. Active purchasing has meant the Ashmolean now has a well- represented collection of the highest quality.