Sites of Interest around Mita Campus

Sites of Interest
Gift Shop
Cafeterias and Restaurants

Sites of Interest

Old University Library

The Old University Library in Mita, which has survived two major disasters—the Great Kanto Earthquake and the Tokyo air raids—retains its original splendor to this day. Planned as part of Keio University’s 50th anniversary commemorative projects, construction took approximately three years and was completed in 1912. Design and supervision of the construction were handled by Tatsuzo Sone and Seiichiro Nakajo (Sone Nakajo Architects). This Gothic-style Western building features a magnificent exterior of red brick and granite. The complex comprises the main building (basement and three above-ground floors), the library (six above-ground floors), and the octagonal tower in the southeast corner (four above-ground floors), with a total floor area of 660 square meters. The size of its collection and reading rooms was also groundbreaking for a university library at the time. The dial of the clock mounted high up on the facade bears the inscription TEMPUS FUGIT (Latin for “time flies”). Furthermore, the stained glass above the entrance hall staircase, inscribed with Calamvs Gladio Fortior (Latin for “The pen is mightier than the sword”), represents Keio University’s spirit of never yielding to power. The second floor houses the Fukuzawa Yukichi Memorial Keio History Museum.

Public Speaking Hall (Mita Enzetsu-Kan)

On May 1, 1875, the Enzetsukan (Public Speaking Hall) was constructed as Japan’s first public lecture hall. Originally located between the Old University Library and the Keio Corporate Administration, it was relocated to its current site (Inariyama, southwest of the Mita Campus) in 1924. Restoration work was carried out in 1947. Additionally, dismantling and restoration work began in 1995, taking approximately one and a half years to complete. With its wooden tiled roof and Western-style design featuring namako walls, the building was designated a National Important Cultural Property in 1967. Even today, official events of the school are held here, including the Mita Public Speaking Event and Yukichi Fukuzawa-Francis Wayland Lecture Day.

East Research Building Arcade Entrance

Beneath the Keio Pen Mark above the arcade entrances on the east and west sides of the East Research Building is inscribed the Latin phrase HOMO NEC VLLVS CVIQVAM PRAEPOSITVS NEC SVBDITVS CREATVR, meaning “No man is created above or beneath any other.” A more literal translation would be, “The heavens make nobody above anyone else, nor below anyone else,” and to render the connotation of the Japanese word ten (“the heavens”), it is expressed as a negative in passive voice.

Maboroshi no Mon

The old East Gate, completed in 1913 after renovating the black wooden gate of the former residence of the Shimabara Domain, has been affectionately known as the Maboroshi no Mon (“phantom gate”), a name whose origins lie in the lyrics of a school song (“We stand on a hill of wisdom, past the phantom gate”). It was moved to its current location in 2000. Additionally, the slope just before the Maboroshi no Mon features large stones known as umadome-ishi, said to have been used for tethering horses when the gate was part of the former residence of the Shimabara Domain.

Stained Glass(East Research Building)

The circular stained glass panels set into the central sections of the east and west walls of the East Hall (not open to the public) feature the words FESTINA LENTE incorporated into their design. This Latin phrase means “more haste, less speed,” echoing the inscription TEMPUS FUGIT (“time flies”) on the clock face of the Old University Library.

Ginkgo Tree in the Quad

The large gingko tree in the quad, which Mita students use as a meeting spot. It has become a symbol of Mita Campus.

Keio University Library (Media Center)

The New Wing “Shinkan 21,” opened in 1982, is a library with six floors above ground and five below. Alongside the Old University Library, it houses humanities and social science materials relevant to the specialized fields of the Faculties of Letters, Economics, Law, and Business and Commerce. A key feature of the library is its mostly open stacks, allowing users direct access to its vast collection and the ability to handle materials themselves. It also makes an intellectual contribution to society by displaying its valuable materials in exhibition rooms and sharing images online.

Bust of Yukichi Fukuzawa

This bust was first erected on Yukichi Fukuzawa’s birthday in 1954. Originally installed in the garden of Research Laboratory No. 1, located where the Faculty Research Building now stands, it was temporarily moved into storage in the late 1960s to accommodate renovations to the school buildings. Subsequently, due to factors such as unrest on campus, it was finally restored to its position in front of the Old University Library in 1983. Finally, in early 2017, it was relocated to the front of the Mita Enzetsukan (Public Speaking Hall) due to renovation work on the Old University Library.

Bust of Yukichi Fukuzawa in its new location outside the Mita Enzetsukan (Public Speaking Hall)

Museums

The Keio University Cultural Property Collection is housed and utilized at various locations throughout the university. Campus museums and exhibition spaces host unique exhibitions that draw on specialist expertise, and classes incorporating cultural assets are also held.

Museums

Other Monuments and Buildings

This leaflet provides an overview of the historic buildings, numerous monuments, and works of art located on the Mita Campus.

→三田キャンパス歴史芸術ガイドPDF

Gift Shop

Information Plaza

Visitors can buy official goods and pick up various pamphlets and watch videos about Keio University.

Opening hours:

Weekdays and Saturdays:10:00-18:00

Sundays and holidays:10:00-16:00

(Open during the Summer and Winter Holidays. *Except for Dec. 30 to Jan. 3)

Tel:

'+81 (0)3-5427-1436 (for inquiries related to Keio Official Goods)

Keio Official Goods Online Store

Cafeterias and Restaurants

Fukuzawa Yukichi was also a man with a strong interest in food. For example, in 1893, the newspaper Jiji Shinpo, founded by Fukuzawa, began serializing what was likely the first-ever cooking column in newspaper history, titled “What Shall We Have?” It is believed to have been launched in an effort to encourage women to develop a greater interest in society through the newspaper. Furthermore, it was Fukuzawa who first introduced the word “curry” to Japan, writing it as koruri, which eventually became the modern Japanese term karee. The Mita Campus currently has the “Co-op Cafeteria” and “Yama-shoku” in the West School Building, “The Cafeteria” in the South School Building, and a cafeteria for alumni, faculty, and staff members. Yama-shoku was opened in 1937, with its name, a shortened form of yamaue no shokudo, “hilltop cafeteria,” becoming established after the war. Another theory suggests that after the war, amid the burnt ruins, it was given this name because the way the building swayed in the wind blowing up the hill behind it resembled a mountain hut. The traditional curry rice at “Yama-shoku,” its flavor unchanged since the cafeteria’s opening, has long been cherished as a nostalgic memory for Keio students, alumni, and faculty and staff members alike.