is Japan's oldest modern model silk reeling factory, established in 1872 by the government to introduce modern machine silk reeling from France and spread its technology in Japan. The factory is designated by the government as a National Historic Site and all its buildings are preserved in very good condition. It is located in the city of Tomioka, Gunma Prefecture, Japan, about 100 km northwest of Tokyo. It is also featured as the 'ni' card in Jomo Karuta playing cards. History Following the Meiji restoration, the new Meiji government needed export products to raise the monies necessary for the industrialization and westernization of Japan. Goods which were already produced in Japan and which could be exported for good profit included tea, silk thread and silkworm cocoons. Especially with the spread of the silkworm disease called pébrine in France and Italy, and the turmoil in China caused by the Taiping Rebellion, Japanese silk was in high demand. In 1862, shortly before the Meiji restoration, raw silk and silkworm cocoons accounted for 86% for Japan's exports. However, soon after the restoration, overproduction, and the recovery of silk producing areas in Europe and China led to a drastic fall in raw silk prices. The Meiji government countered by changing its focus to silk products, such as silk thread and cloth, to increase the value of its silk exports. Foreign merchants had previously approached the government with offers to provide funding for a silk mill but this was rejected as the government considered silk production to be a critical strategic industry; however, Japan lacked the technology to construct a mill on its own. In 1870, a government-owned model factory, the Maebashi Silk Mill, was constructed with equipment imported from Italy and with a Swiss engineer to assist. It was only on a small scale and employed 12 people. Later the same year, leaders of the Meiji government, including Ōkuma Shigenobu, Itō Hirobumi and Shibusawa Eiichi approached the French embassy and was introduced to Paul Brunat, an engineer who was working as a raw silk inspector in Yokohama to oversee a project to construct a much larger facility. Brunat in turn hired Edmond Auguste Bastan to create a blueprint for the design of the silk mill, which was completed the end of December 1870. Bastan was able to complete the design such a short period as he had previously designed the Yokosuka ironworks and was