Oleg Benesch

The word 'samurai' stands for ideals of courage, honour, self-sacrifice and loyalty. Yet much of the common understanding is imaginative fiction. This book explores the concept from medieval reality, through early modern changes, to today's hugely varied popular culture, challenging preconceptions and exploding myths. The figure of the samurai is unique in its global intelligibility, read both as a symbol...

The figure of the samurai is unique in its global intelligibility, read both as a symbol of Japan and as a universal icon of the virtuous and fearless warrior. Published to accompany a major exhibition at the British Museum, Samurai is the first book to explore the centuries-long trajectory of the samurai through objects from international collections. It discusses the...