Rampo was a great admirer of western mystery writers, and especially of Edgar Allan Poe. The pseudonym "Edogawa Rampo" is actually a Japanese rendering of Poe's name. Other authors who were special influences on him were Maurice Leblanc and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.
In the anime and mangaCase Closed (Detective Conan in Japan), the main character, Jimmy Kudo (Shin'ichi Kudo in the Japanese version), chooses the alias Conan Edogawa, named after Doyle and Edogawa.
"EdogawaRanpo, the castle of illusion in the godown"
The "castle of illusion" represents the residence of EdogawaRanpo in Ikebukuro where he lived for 31 years until he passed away in 1965.
This exhibition is a part of the programme commemorating the 70th year from the start of administration of Toshima ward, and the attraction of Ranpo's literature is explored on the basis of the town of Ikebukuro, together with the display of the materials.