Museo de Manga (Manga Museum)

The Asociación México Japonesa (Mexico Japanese Association) was established in 1956 as a result of efforts from Mexico’s Japanese migrant and Japanese descendant communities, looking to establish tighter relationships between both countries and cultures. The current location was opened three years later thanks to the donation of its terrain by San Siro Matsumoto.

Its initial cultural offerings for the non-Japanese population included gardens, language lessons, and the establishment of a restaurant. They would later be joined by other lessons in subjects like ikebana and origami, a minimarket, and the Manga Museum.

This museum was established thanks to a donation of almost 20,000 volumes from a museum of the same name in the city of Kyoto. This means that the vast majority of the material available is exclusively in the Japanese language. The volumes in Spanish and English are limited to a mere couple of shelves.

Another bookshelf features a selection of volumes for sale, most of these also in Japanese. For the fans who have actually learned the language, this Museum represents what might be Mexico City’s most important collection.