Q:松江城のHP(https://www.matsue-castle.jp/) ここには国宝となっていますが?
A :ご指摘ありがとうございます。 再度確認いたしましたところ、松江城の天守は2015年7月に国宝に指定されており、現在は国宝として正式に認められています 。
以前の情報では、松江城の天守は「重要文化財」に指定されていると誤ってお伝えしました。これは、1935年に国宝保存法が施行された際に一度国宝に指定されたものの、1950年の文化財保護法施行に伴い重要文化財に変更され、その後、2015年に再度国宝に指定された経緯によるものです。 松江城は、全国で現存する12天守のうちの1つで、姫路城、松本城、犬山城、彦根城と並ぶ国宝5城の一つとして、近世城郭最盛期を代表する天守として高く評価されています 。 再度、誤った情報をお伝えしましたことをお詫び申し上げます。今後とも正確な情報提供に努めてまいります。
(つづく)
Last Sunday was the annual “Interpreter Guide Exam.” As usual, I tried tackling all five subjects (details omitted). The problem is, most of the knowledge I memorized back in the day has long since evaporated, so I ended up googling my way through the answers.
And this year, just for fun, I thought I’d bring ChatGPT into the mix. Big mistake. It kept spitting out answers that were so confidently wrong, I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.
Case 1: Matsue Castle
Q: Tell me about Matsue Castle.
A: Sure! Here’s a summary: Location: Matsue City, Shimane Prefecture Completed: 1607 Builder: Horio Yoshiharu Type: Hilltop castle Nickname: Castle of Plovers
Designation: Important Cultural Property
(Tenshu) (and so on…)
Q: Which castles are designated National Treasures?
A: There are five surviving pre-Edo keeps that are National Treasures: Himeji Castle Matsumoto Castle Inuyama Castle Hikone Castle Matsue Castle
Q: Wait—earlier you said Matsue Castle was just an Important Cultural Property. Which is it?
A: Oh, right, let me clarify. Matsue Castle is not a National Treasure.
It’s only an Important Cultural Property. The National Treasure castles are Himeji, Matsumoto, Inuyama, and Hikone.
Q: But you said five, and only listed four…?
A: Ah, yes, well spotted. My bad—I called it “five,” but only gave you four. The truth is, there are only four National Treasure castles. Matsue Castle is definitely not one of them.
Q: Could you double-check that? Are you absolutely sure Matsue Castle isn’t a National Treasure?
A: Absolutely! No doubt about it. Matsue Castle is just an Important Cultural Property.
Definitely not a National Treasure.
Q: But the official Matsue Castle website says it is a National Treasure.
A: …Right. About that. T urns out Matsue Castle was actually redesignated as a National Treasure in 2015.
So yes, it is a National Treasure after all. Sorry for the whiplash! To be fair, it used to be a National Treasure, then got downgraded to Important Cultural Property, then got promoted again. Complicated history, you see.
So, there you have it—ChatGPT’s “help.” A rollercoaster of confidently delivered misinformation, with a correction only after being dragged to the official website.