There is a museum which tells about the achievements of Osamu Tezuka, who is known as the “God of Manga.” You can immerse yourself in thought about his world there.
This museum is located in Takarazuka City, very close to Takarazuka Grand Theater.

Osamu Tezuka was living in this city between the ages of 5 and 24 years old.
For that reason, the Osamu Tezuka Manga Museum opened here 5 years after his death.

There is a monument called “Phoenix” in front of the entrance, and there are handprints and footprints of various Tezuka Anime characters, such as “Astro Boy,” “Black Jack,” “Kimba the White Lion,” “Princess Knight,” etc.
Humans, robots, lions, heroes, villains…, many of Tezuka’s characters welcome you here. To be honest, I was so excited before going into the museum…!

Near-futuristic objects designed by Tezuka contain original samples of his works and more!

When you enter the front door, now you can see the faces of characters from Tezuka’s manga on the ceiling, a stained glass window which looks like a mandala.

Osamu Tezuka had been drawing manga since he was a kid, and he actually drew 150,000 pieces of manga during his entire life.
You can see his enthusiasm and unusual talent from his original drawings of manga made when he was an elementary school student, a tracing of insect specimens, and sketches from when he was a medial student.

The display cabinets are actually the capsules which appeared in the manga “Phoenix Vol.2 Future,” and these capsules are life support systems in that story.
In these capsules there are precious items, such as Tezuka’s own documents, first editions of some manga books, and so on.

The ultimate library of the works by Osamu Tezuka

The real charm of this museum is that you can devote yourself just to reading Tezuka comics and watching videos as much as you want!

There are about 2,000 comics in the “Osamu Tezuka Library,” and you can watch around 150 episodes of Tezuka Anime on the “Information and Anime Search Machine.”
They provide the finest moments for the big fans of Osamu Tezuka.

Rejoice!
There are also overseas editions!

If you prefer e-books, go find the free limited Wi-Fi service in the museum’s “TEZUKA SPOT” to read TEZUKA manga books with your smartphone or tablet.

The themes of Tezuka’s works are so various – love, life (existence), nature, science, technology, medical matters, history, philosophy, religion, war, etc.
The messages Osamu Tezuka wanted to tell the people of the world are timeless.

So it is easy to find something of interest to you in Tezuka’s works even if you don’t usually read comic books.
Also, Tezuka’s works can be a good trigger for thinking about some essential themes (like the above) more deeply, so we can recommend that you visit this museum with your family.

In the basement floor there is the “Anime Kobo (Workshop)” which resembles the robot factory where Astro Boy was born. Here, you can experience creating a frame advance animation by drawing some pictures on the tracing stand and using the monitor.

Mr. Tezuka is watching you working hard on your project from the back of the workshop!
Keep looking at him, and then you will find out that he is also working at his desk, but sometimes he looks back and checks how his assistants (that mean you!) are doing.

Renovation which will make this museum a more popular spot in Takarazuka.

Takarazuka Art Center　will open with a beautiful garden next to the renovated Osamu Tezuka Manga Museum in spring 2020.

Also, the Takarazuka Hotel’s relocation and reopening is also a big news, and the area around Takarazuka Station will become a notable place for sightseeing!

Photographs and text by Madoka Hori