Bungaku no Oka (Hill of Literature)
On a small hill beside the octagonal tower of the red-brick Old University Library, three literary monuments stand alongside a bust of Kaoru Osanai. These monuments commemorate a poem by Haruo Sato, a waka poem by Hideo Yoshino, and a haiku by Mantaro Kubota, all writers associated with the Faculty of Letters in Mita.
Bust of Kaoru Osanai
Kaoru Osanai founded the Tsukiji Little Theatre and is known as a pioneer of modern theater (shingeki) in Japan. He was invited to serve as a lecturer in the Faculty of Letters in 1910. It is also said that the founding of the Tsukiji Little Theatre was directly inspired by a lecture held at the Large Hall at Mita and organized by the Keio University Drama Seminar.
Poetry Monument to Haruo Sato
Haruo Sato entered the Faculty of Letters in admiration of writer Kafu Nagai, a professor in the Department of Literature, but left the school. He later left behind a poem reflecting on his student days at Mita. After the war, he taught a public lecture titled “Perspectives on Modern Literature.”
Monument to Hideo Yoshino
“When the daphne blooms in front of the library, both love and exams weigh heavily on the heart.”
Haiku Monument to Mantaro Kubota
“Winter showers—the red bricks of the Grand Lecture Hall”
For many years, the Mantaro Kubota Memorial Fund supported courses in the Faculty of Letters such as “Contemporary Art” and “Poetics.”
Noguchi Room
In 1950, Shin Banraisha was built as the Second Faculty Building and designed by architect Yoshiro Taniguchi. The space itself was designed by Isamu Noguchi, whose sculptures were placed in the garden, and the building gradually became known as the “Noguchi Room.” The site was later cleared for the construction of the South Building, where the Noguchi Room and sculptures were later moved.