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Koishikawa-Kōrakuen is a seventeenth-century garden in Koishikawa, Bunkyō, Tokyo. The garden was begun by Mito Yorifusa in 1629, and completed by his son Mito Mitsukuni. It was created with advice from the Chinese scholar Zhu Shun Shui, and incorporates elements of both Chinese and Japanese taste.
It is one of three surviving daimyō gardens of the many that were created in Edo after it became the military capital of the country, the others being the Rikugi-en and the Hama Rikyū gardens.
I've started this MOC over two years ago, and had made substantial progress towards this current version all the way back in Jan 2021, when it was about 75% done. Then life got in the way, and I had to prioritise other things, namely finishing my PhD, moving house, getting married, and a whole lot more. Since January I've been slowly reclaiming back some time for my #LEGO #hobby and I've been really enjoying it as of late. I plan to bring you guys a whole lot more in the coming weeks and months.
For now, enjoy this MOC and please let me know what you think! I'll also take this moment to thank my MasterPiece friends for their constant encouragement and support throughout this journey, without whom I'm not sure this would have turned out nearly as good.
Shinjuku Gyo-en (新宿御苑) is a large park and garden in Shinjuku and Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan. It was originally a residence of the Naitō family in the Edo period. Afterwards, it became a garden under the management of the Imperial Household Agency of Japan. It is now a national park under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of the Environment.
History
The shōgun bequeathed this land to Lord Naitō (daimyō) of Tsuruga in the Edo period who completed a garden here in 1772. After the Meiji Restoration the house and its grounds were converted into an experimental agricultural centre. It then became a botanical garden before becoming an imperial garden in 1879. The current configuration of the garden was completed in 1906. Most of the garden was destroyed by air raids in 1945, during the later stages of World War II. The garden was rebuilt after the war.
The jurisdiction over the Imperial Palace Outer Garden and the Kyoto imperial garden was transferred to the Ministry of Health and Welfare (now part of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare) in 1947.
On May 21, 1949, the garden became open to the public as a national park. It came under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of the Environment in January 2001, with the official English name "Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden". The official Japanese name remains Shinjuku Gyoen, where gyoen means "imperial garden".
In 1989, the Shinjuku Gyoen was the site chosen for the funeral rites of Emperor Shōwa before he was buried at the Musashi Imperial Graveyard.
Features
The garden, which is 58.3 hectares in area with a circumference of 3.5 km, blends three distinct styles: a French Formal and English Landscape in the north and to the south a Japanese traditional. A traditional Japanese tea house can be found within the gardens.
The garden is a favourite hanami (cherry-blossom viewing) spot, and large crowds can be present during cherry blossom season.
Flora
The garden has more than 20,000 trees, including approximately 1,500 cherry trees which bloom from late March (Shidare or Weeping Cherry), to early April (Somei or Tokyo Cherry), and on to late April (Kanzan Cherry). Other trees found here include the majestic Himalayan cedars, which soar above the rest of the trees in the park, tulip trees, cypresses, and plane trees, which were first planted in Japan in the Imperial Gardens.
Horticulture work has been going on in the greenhouses in the garden since 1892. The present greenhouse, built in the 1950s has a stock of over 1,700 tropical and subtropical plant species on permanent display.
Wakayama (和歌山市 Wakayama-shi, Japanese: [ɰakaꜜjama]) is the capital city of Wakayama Prefecture in the Kansai region of Japan.
It is about 80km South of Osaka, in Osaka Bay.
Wakayama is cleft in two by the Kinokawa River. The city is bordered at the north by mountains and Osaka Prefecture.
In the city center is Wakayama Castle, built on Mt. Torafusu (the name means "a tiger leaning on his side") in a city central park. During the Edo period, the Kishū Tokugawa daimyō ruled from Wakayama Castle. Tokugawa Yoshimune, the fifth Kishū Tokugawa daimyo, became the eighth Tokugawa shōgun. This castle is a concrete replica of the original, which was destroyed in World War II.
Wakayama is home to one of Japan's three Melody Roads, which is made from grooves cut into the pavement, which when driven over causes a tactile vibration and audible rumbling transmitted through the wheels into the car body.
Wakayama Prefecture is famous across Japan for its umeboshi (salty pickled plums) and mikan (mandarins).
Wakayama has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen climate classification Cfa) with hot summers and cool winters. Precipitation is significant throughout the year, and is greater in summer than in winter.
Le château de Matsue (松江城, Matsue-jō) est un château japonais qui se trouve dans la ville de Matsue, préfecture de Shimane. Symbole de la cité lacustre, il est aussi l’unique château du San’in, la partie nord de la région du Chûgoku. Il fut construit par Horio Yoshiharu en l’espace de cinq ans et achevé en 1611.
Selon la légende, le château de Matsue aurait été construit sur le sacrifice d'une jeune femme enterrée sous les murs de pierre du château. Son nom n'a jamais été enregistré et rien de ce qui la concernant ne nous est connu sauf qu'elle est censée avoir été une belle jeune fille qui aimait la danse et est nommée tout simplement la jeune fille de Matsue. Après la construction du château, une loi a été votée interdisant à toute jeune fille de danser dans les rues de Matsue parce que la colline de Shiroyama frémirait et le château serait secoué de « haut en bas ».
Le donjon du château de Matsue est l’un des douze derniers donjons authentiques du Japon. Il n’a en effet jamais été détruit et nous est parvenu tel qu’il était à l’origine. Parmi ces donjons, il se classe second (après celui de Himeji) pour son envergure, troisième pour sa hauteur et quatrième pour son âge.
Surnommé le château du pluvier, car évoquant cet oiseau déployant ses ailes, le donjon fut désigné « Trésor national » en 1935, avant d’être reclassé « bien culturel important » en 1950 du fait d’un changement de législation.
La plupart des châteaux du Japon furent démolis peu après la restauration impériale de Meiji de 1868 qui scella la fin du shogunat. Ce fut également le cas du château de Matsue en 1875. Seul le donjon fut sauvé de la destruction.
fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Château_de_Matsue
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Matsue Castle (松江城 Matsue-jō) is a feudal castle in Matsue in Shimane prefecture, Japan. Nicknamed the "black castle" or "plover castle", it is one of the few remaining medieval castles in Japan – at least of the few remaining in their original wooden form, and not a modern reconstruction in concrete.
The construction of Matsue Castle began in 1607 and finished in 1611, under the local lord Horio Yoshiharu. In 1638, the fief and castle passed to the Matsudaira clan, a junior branch of the ruling Tokugawa clan.
Most Japanese castles have been damaged or destroyed by war, earthquakes, or other causes. Since a large part of their construction was wooden, fire was a major hazard. Matsue castle was built after the last great war of feudal Japan, so it never saw a battle. Yet only some of the walls and the keep exist today.
Of the 12 castles remaining in Japan, this is the only one remaining in the Sanin region. This castle is the second largest, the third tallest (30m) and the sixth oldest amongst castles. It was built over a period of 5 years by the daimyo of the Izumo region, Horio Yoshiharu, and was completed in 1611.
After the reigns of Horio Tadaharu and Kyōgoku Tadataka, Matsudaira Naomasa, a grandson of Tokugawa Ieyasu, became Lord of the castle, after being transferred from Matsumoto in Shinshu province, and thus began a reign that lasted 10 generations of the Matsudaira clan over a period of 234 years.
In 1875, all of the buildings within the castle were dismantled, with the exception of the castle tower itself, which was allowed to remain due to pressure from interest groups. The castle underwent a complete reconstruction between 1950 and 1955.
The castle is a complex structure, built in a watchtower-style, that appears to be five stories from the outside, but has, in fact, six levels inside. Most of the walls of the castle are painted black. It is a strong structure, built to withstand warfare, yet at the same time, it is majestic and solemn, reminiscent of the Momoyama style.
The castle has been registered as a national treasure of Japan on July 9th, 2015.
Devastating damage with tradeoffs in range and speed.
Ammunition: 15
Attack skill: 6
Charge bonus: 6
Anti-Cavalry Skill: 0
Armor: 4
Defense skill: 2
Range: 100
Precision: 50
Loading speed: 20
Morale: 8
Special abilities: "Bamboo Wall," "Fire by Rank," "Rapid Volley"
Attack skill: 14
Charge bonus: 28
Anti-Cavalry Skill: 0
Armor: 2
Defense skill: 1
Morale: 10
Special abilities: "Banzai"
Shōkozan Tōkei-ji (松岡山東慶寺), also known as Kakekomi-dera (駆け込み寺) or Enkiri-dera (縁切り寺), is a Buddhist temple and a former nunnery, the only survivor of a network of five nunneries called Amagozan (尼五山), in the city of Kamakura in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. It is part of the Rinzai school of Zen's Engaku-ji branch, and was opened by Hōjō Sadatoki in 1285. It is best known as a historic refuge for women who were abused by their husbands.[1] It is for this reason sometimes referred to as the "Divorce Temple".
The temple was founded in the 8th year of Koan (1285) by nun Kakusan-ni, wife of Hōjō Tokimune (1251–1284), after her husband's death. Because it was then customary for a wife to become a nun after her husband's death, she decided to open the temple and dedicate it to the memory of her husband. She also made it a refuge for battered wives.
In an age when men could easily divorce their wives but wives had great difficulty divorcing their husbands, Tōkei-ji allowed women to become officially divorced after staying there for two years. Temple records show that, during the Tokugawa period alone, an estimated 2,000 women sought shelter there. The temple lost its right to concede divorce in 1873, when a new law was approved and the Court of Justice started to handle the cases.
The temple remained a nunnery for over 600 years and men could not enter until 1902, when a man took the post of abbot and Tōkei-ji came under the supervision of Engaku-ji. Before then, the chief nun was always an important figure, and once it even was a daughter of Emperor Go-Daigo. Tenshū-ni, the daughter and only survivor of Toyotomi Hideyori's family, son of Hideyoshi, entered Tōkei-ji following the Siege of Osaka. Such was the nunnery's prestige that its couriers did not need to prostrate themselves when they met a daimyō's procession.
The two main buildings of the complex are the Main Hall and the Suigetsu-dō, but the latter is not open to visitors. The temple's old Butsuden, an Important Cultural Property, was bought during the Meiji period by businessman Tomitaro Hara and is now in the garden he built, Yokohama's Sankei-en.
figure of Daimyo-Gyoretsu
掛川城・大名行列フィギュア
I upload 10 photographs today.
My home, in Shizuoka Prefecture, this is a major castle along with the Hamamatsu castle.
Please enjoy Japan scenery...
In Edo period, the daimyo of each prefecture made the procession
and was moving his territory and Edo(current Tokyo).
It is a part of procession.
I'll go to China for business trip about 2 weeks.
So I have a break for Flickr. Let's meet you in Flickr again.
Thank you so much for your visit and comments.
Have a nice days!!
掛川城シリーズ、10枚の写真一挙に掲載します。
掛川城というとあまりピンと来ないかもしれません。静岡県では浜松城と並びメジャーなお城です。
「山内一豊」「功名が辻」というと記憶に残っている方も多いのでは！？
掛川インターからも近く、城下町をはじめ見所も多いので、
静岡にお越しの際は是非お立ち寄り下さい。
宜しかったら残り9枚の写真、眺めてみて下さい。
さて、私は明日より中国に出張します。
もちろん仕事メインなので、可能な限り閲覧しようとは思いますが、
Flickrはしばらくお休みさせて頂きます。
今年は残念ながら伊豆の河津桜も見に行けませんが、
まもなく綺麗な色合いが楽しめる事と思います。皆さんの写真に期待しています！
Kakegawa city, Shizuoka pref, Japan
The Duel of the Figures continues…
It’s not battle of Jedi vs Sith, it’s not a battle of Good vs Evil, it’s a battle of coolness as the high quality “Samurai” Darth Vader action figure fights against a “mass market” version of Kit Fisto.
Continues from part 3: www.flickr.com/photos/133750589@N08/25093753264/in/photos...
You can find the whole series (the last part will be posted soon) here: www.flickr.com/photos/133750589@N08/albums/72157665467242701
Vader maintains his hold on Fisto figure.
Fisto: “You…are deluded to think your kind actually means something…cough.. You have just a niche market…your kind are so expensive…we are so affordable…cough… we can swarm the market and be forever remembered…”
Vader: “You are a fool to think you can leave a mark in the history of collectibles. Quality does matter and while my kind may be expensive, you are annoyingly overpriced for a figure of your quality! We'll be a prized possession in a collection but you… you will be forgotten. It’s time to sink into oblivion.”
With a swift movement Vader plunges his Lightsaber into his opponent’s chest.
To be continued…
No action figure has been harmed during the making of this photo; this is just a simulation of violence/combat etc, etc :) It’s obvious but a little disclaimer never hurts lol :)
Samurai Vader is the Bandai Tamashii Nations Movie Realization Samurai Taisho [General] Darth Vader, Death Star Armor action figure :) I know it’s as long as a Hyperspace route lol :)
Fisto figure lacks his right arm because he lost it earlier in the fight.
I hope you are enjoying this little series :)
May the Force be with You :)
Shōkozan Tōkei-ji (松岡山東慶寺), also known as Kakekomi-dera (駆け込み寺) or Enkiri-dera (縁切り寺), is a Buddhist temple and a former nunnery, the only survivor of a network of five nunneries called Amagozan (尼五山), in the city of Kamakura in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. It is part of the Rinzai school of Zen's Engaku-ji branch, and was opened by Hōjō Sadatoki in 1285. It is best known as a historic refuge for women who were abused by their husbands. It is for this reason sometimes referred to as the "Divorce Temple".
The temple was founded in the 8th year of Koan (1285) by nun Kakusan-ni, wife of Hōjō Tokimune (1251–1284), after her husband's death. Because it was then customary for a wife to become a nun after her husband's death, she decided to open the temple and dedicate it to the memory of her husband. She also made it a refuge for battered wives.
In an age when men could easily divorce their wives but wives had great difficulty divorcing their husbands, Tōkei-ji allowed women to become officially divorced after staying there for two years. Temple records show that, during the Tokugawa period alone, an estimated 2,000 women sought shelter there. The temple lost its right to concede divorce in 1873, when a new law was approved and the Court of Justice started to handle the cases.
The temple remained a nunnery for over 600 years and men could not enter until 1902, when a man took the post of abbot and Tōkei-ji came under the supervision of Engaku-ji. Before then, the chief nun was always an important figure, and once it even was a daughter of Emperor Go-Daigo. Tenshū-ni, the daughter and only survivor of Toyotomi Hideyori's family, son of Hideyoshi, entered Tōkei-ji following the Siege of Osaka. Such was the nunnery's prestige that its couriers did not need to prostrate themselves when they met a daimyōs procession.
The two main buildings of the complex are the Main Hall and the Suigetsu-dō, but the latter is not open to visitors. The temple's old Butsuden, an Important Cultural Property, was bought during the Meiji period by businessman Tomitaro Hara and is now in the garden he built, Yokohama's Sankei-en.
Behind the temple there is a graveyard where many celebrities are buried, among them in adjacent graves are three men also famous among European Zen and haiku interested, Kitarō Nishida, Daisetz Teitaro Suzuki and Reginald Horace Blyth.
Tōkei-ji - Wikipedia
Shōkozan Tōkei-ji (松岡 山東 慶 寺), también conocido como Kakekomi-dera (駆 け 込 み 寺) o Enkiri-dera (縁 切 り 寺), es un templo budista y un antiguo convento, el único superviviente de una red. de cinco conventos llamados Amagozan (尼 五 山), en la ciudad de Kamakura en la prefectura de Kanagawa, Japón. Es parte de la escuela Rinzai de la rama Engaku-ji de Zen, y fue inaugurada por Hōjō Sadatoki en 1285. Es más conocida como un refugio histórico para mujeres que fueron abusadas por sus maridos. Por esta razón, a veces se lo denomina "Templo del divorcio".
El templo fue fundado en el octavo año de Koan (1285) por la monja Kakusan-ni, esposa de Hōjō Tokimune (1251-1284), después de la muerte de su esposo. Debido a que entonces era costumbre que una esposa se convirtiera en monja después de la muerte de su esposo, decidió abrir el templo y dedicarlo a la memoria de su esposo. También lo convirtió en un refugio para esposas maltratadas.
En una época en la que los hombres podían divorciarse fácilmente de sus esposas, pero las esposas tenían grandes dificultades para divorciarse de sus maridos, Tōkei-ji permitió que las mujeres se divorciaran oficialmente después de permanecer allí durante dos años. Los registros del templo muestran que, solo durante el período Tokugawa, unas 2.000 mujeres buscaron refugio allí. El templo perdió su derecho a otorgar el divorcio en 1873, cuando se aprobó una nueva ley y el Tribunal de Justicia comenzó a manejar los casos.
El templo siguió siendo un convento durante más de 600 años y los hombres no pudieron entrar hasta 1902, cuando un hombre asumió el cargo de abad y Tōkei-ji quedó bajo la supervisión de Engaku-ji. Antes de eso, la monja principal siempre fue una figura importante, e incluso una vez fue hija del emperador Go-Daigo. Tenshū-ni, la hija y única superviviente de la familia de Toyotomi Hideyori, hijo de Hideyoshi, entró en Tōkei-ji tras el Asedio de Osaka. Tal era el prestigio del convento de monjas que sus mensajeros no necesitaban postrarse cuando se encontraban con una procesión de daimyō.
Los dos edificios principales del complejo son el Salón Principal y el Suigetsu-dō, pero este último no está abierto a los visitantes. El antiguo Butsuden del templo, una propiedad cultural importante, fue comprado durante el período Meiji por el empresario Tomitaro Hara y ahora se encuentra en el jardín que construyó, Sankei-en de Yokohama.
Detrás del templo hay un cementerio donde están enterradas muchas celebridades, entre ellas en tumbas adyacentes hay tres hombres también famosos entre el Zen europeo y los interesados en el haiku, Kitarō Nishida, Daisetz Teitaro Suzuki y Reginald Horace Blyth.
Shōkozan Tōkei-ji (松岡山東慶寺), also known as Kakekomi-dera (駆け込み寺) or Enkiri-dera (縁切り寺), is a Buddhist temple and a former nunnery, the only survivor of a network of five nunneries called Amagozan (尼五山), in the city of Kamakura in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. It is part of the Rinzai school of Zen's Engaku-ji branch, and was opened by Hōjō Sadatoki in 1285. It is best known as a historic refuge for women who were abused by their husbands.[1] It is for this reason sometimes referred to as the "Divorce Temple".
The temple was founded in the 8th year of Koan (1285) by nun Kakusan-ni, wife of Hōjō Tokimune (1251–1284), after her husband's death. Because it was then customary for a wife to become a nun after her husband's death, she decided to open the temple and dedicate it to the memory of her husband. She also made it a refuge for battered wives.
In an age when men could easily divorce their wives but wives had great difficulty divorcing their husbands, Tōkei-ji allowed women to become officially divorced after staying there for two years. Temple records show that, during the Tokugawa period alone, an estimated 2,000 women sought shelter there. The temple lost its right to concede divorce in 1873, when a new law was approved and the Court of Justice started to handle the cases.
The temple remained a nunnery for over 600 years and men could not enter until 1902, when a man took the post of abbot and Tōkei-ji came under the supervision of Engaku-ji. Before then, the chief nun was always an important figure, and once it even was a daughter of Emperor Go-Daigo. Tenshū-ni, the daughter and only survivor of Toyotomi Hideyori's family, son of Hideyoshi, entered Tōkei-ji following the Siege of Osaka. Such was the nunnery's prestige that its couriers did not need to prostrate themselves when they met a daimyō's procession.
The two main buildings of the complex are the Main Hall and the Suigetsu-dō, but the latter is not open to visitors. The temple's old Butsuden, an Important Cultural Property, was bought during the Meiji period by businessman Tomitaro Hara and is now in the garden he built, Yokohama's Sankei-en.
Shōkozan Tōkei-ji (松岡山東慶寺), also known as Kakekomi-dera (駆け込み寺) or Enkiri-dera (縁切り寺), is a Buddhist temple and a former nunnery, the only survivor of a network of five nunneries called Amagozan (尼五山), in the city of Kamakura in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. It is part of the Rinzai school of Zen's Engaku-ji branch, and was opened by Hōjō Sadatoki in 1285. It is best known as a historic refuge for women who were abused by their husbands.[1] It is for this reason sometimes referred to as the "Divorce Temple".
The temple was founded in the 8th year of Koan (1285) by nun Kakusan-ni, wife of Hōjō Tokimune (1251–1284), after her husband's death. Because it was then customary for a wife to become a nun after her husband's death, she decided to open the temple and dedicate it to the memory of her husband. She also made it a refuge for battered wives.
In an age when men could easily divorce their wives but wives had great difficulty divorcing their husbands, Tōkei-ji allowed women to become officially divorced after staying there for two years. Temple records show that, during the Tokugawa period alone, an estimated 2,000 women sought shelter there. The temple lost its right to concede divorce in 1873, when a new law was approved and the Court of Justice started to handle the cases.
The temple remained a nunnery for over 600 years and men could not enter until 1902, when a man took the post of abbot and Tōkei-ji came under the supervision of Engaku-ji. Before then, the chief nun was always an important figure, and once it even was a daughter of Emperor Go-Daigo. Tenshū-ni, the daughter and only survivor of Toyotomi Hideyori's family, son of Hideyoshi, entered Tōkei-ji following the Siege of Osaka. Such was the nunnery's prestige that its couriers did not need to prostrate themselves when they met a daimyō's procession.
The two main buildings of the complex are the Main Hall and the Suigetsu-dō, but the latter is not open to visitors. The temple's old Butsuden, an Important Cultural Property, was bought during the Meiji period by businessman Tomitaro Hara and is now in the garden he built, Yokohama's Sankei-en.
Kōraku-en (後楽園 Kōrakuen) is a Japanese garden located in Okayama, Okayama Prefecture. It is one of the Three Great Gardens of Japan, along with Kenroku-en and Kairaku-en. Korakuen was built in 1700 by Ikeda Tsunamasa, lord of Okayama. The garden reached its modern form in 1863
History
In 1687, the daimyō Ikeda Tsunamasa ordered Tsuda Nagatada to begin construction of the garden. It was completed in 1700 and has retained its original appearance to the present day, except for a few changes by various daimyōs. The garden was originally called Kōen ("later garden") because it was built after Okayama Castle. However, since the garden was built in the spirit of "sen-yu-koraku" ("grieve earlier than others, enjoy later than others"), the name was changed to Kōrakuen in 1871.
The Korakuen is one of the few daimyō gardens in the provinces where historical change can be observed, thanks to the many Edo period paintings and Ikeda family records and documents left behind. The garden was used as a place for entertaining important guests and also as a spa of sorts for daimyōs, although regular folk could visit on certain days.
In 1884, ownership was transferred to Okayama Prefecture and the garden was opened to the public. The garden suffered severe damage during the floods of 1934 and by bombing damage in 1945 during World War II. It has been restored based on Edo-period paintings and diagrams. In 1952, the Kōrakuen was designated as a "Special Scenic Location" under the Cultural Properties Protection Law and is managed as a historical cultural asset to be passed to future generations.
Features of the Garden
The garden is located on the north bank of the Asahi River on an island between the river and a developed part of the city. The garden was designed in the Kaiyu ("scenic promenade") style which presents the visitor with a new view at every turn of the path which connects the lawns, ponds, hills, tea houses, and streams.
The garden covers a total area of approximately 133,000 square meters, with the grassed area covering approximately 18,500 square meters. The length of the stream which runs through the garden is 640 meters. It features a central pond called Sawa-no-ike (Marsh Pond), which contains three islands purported to replicate the scenery around Lake Biwa near Kyoto.
Shōkozan Tōkei-ji (松岡山東慶寺), also known as Kakekomi-dera (駆け込み寺) or Enkiri-dera (縁切り寺), is a Buddhist temple and a former nunnery, the only survivor of a network of five nunneries called Amagozan (尼五山), in the city of Kamakura in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. It is part of the Rinzai school of Zen's Engaku-ji branch, and was opened by Hōjō Sadatoki in 1285. It is best known as a historic refuge for women who were abused by their husbands.[1] It is for this reason sometimes referred to as the "Divorce Temple".
The temple was founded in the 8th year of Koan (1285) by nun Kakusan-ni, wife of Hōjō Tokimune (1251–1284), after her husband's death. Because it was then customary for a wife to become a nun after her husband's death, she decided to open the temple and dedicate it to the memory of her husband. She also made it a refuge for battered wives.
In an age when men could easily divorce their wives but wives had great difficulty divorcing their husbands, Tōkei-ji allowed women to become officially divorced after staying there for two years. Temple records show that, during the Tokugawa period alone, an estimated 2,000 women sought shelter there. The temple lost its right to concede divorce in 1873, when a new law was approved and the Court of Justice started to handle the cases.
The temple remained a nunnery for over 600 years and men could not enter until 1902, when a man took the post of abbot and Tōkei-ji came under the supervision of Engaku-ji. Before then, the chief nun was always an important figure, and once it even was a daughter of Emperor Go-Daigo. Tenshū-ni, the daughter and only survivor of Toyotomi Hideyori's family, son of Hideyoshi, entered Tōkei-ji following the Siege of Osaka. Such was the nunnery's prestige that its couriers did not need to prostrate themselves when they met a daimyō's procession.
The two main buildings of the complex are the Main Hall and the Suigetsu-dō, but the latter is not open to visitors. The temple's old Butsuden, an Important Cultural Property, was bought during the Meiji period by businessman Tomitaro Hara and is now in the garden he built, Yokohama's Sankei-en.
Koishikawa Kōrakuen Garden (小石川後楽園) is in Koishikawa, Bunkyō, Tokyo, adjacent to Tokyo Dome City. It is one of two surviving Edo period clan gardens in modern Tokyo, the other being Kyu Shiba Rikyu Garden, and one of the oldest and best preserved parks in Tokyo.
The construction was started in 1629 by Tokugawa Yorifusa, the daimyo (feudal lord) of Mito han, and was completed by his successor, Tokugawa Mitsukuni.
Mitsukuni named this garden "Kōraku-en" (Kōraku means "enjoying afterwards") after a Chinese teaching of "a governor should worry before people and enjoy after people". The garden shows strong Chinese character in its design, as it was influenced by the West Lake of Hangzhou. (Wikipedia)
Marunouchi (丸の内) es un barrio de Tokio situado en Chiyoda, entre la Estación de Tokio y el Palacio Imperial. El nombre, que significa "dentro del círculo", proviene de su ubicación en el foso exterior del palacio. Es el distrito financiero de Tokio, y los tres bancos más grandes de Japón tienen aquí sus sedes.
En 1590, antes de que Tokugawa Ieyasu entrara en el Castillo Edo, la zona conocida en la actualidad como Marunouchi era una ensenada de la Bahía Edo y se llamaba Hibiya. Con la expansión del castillo, se rellenó esta ensenada, lo que comenzó en 1592. Se construyó un nuevo foso exterior, y el anterior se convirtió en el foso interior. La zona recibió el nombre de Okuruwauchi ("dentro del recinto").
Los daimyo, especialmente shinpan y fudai, construyeron aquí sus mansiones, y con 24 de estas mansiones, la zona también se conocía como daimyō kōji ("callejón de los daimyo"). También estaban aquí las oficinas de los Magistrados del Norte, del Sur y de Finanzas.
Tras la Restauración Meiji, Marunouchi quedó bajo el control del gobierno nacional, quien construyó barracones y terrenos para desfiles del ejército.
El ejército se trasladó de aquí en 1890, e Iwasaki Yanosuke, hermano del fundador (y posteriormente el segundo líder) de Mitsubishi, compró los terrenos por 1,5 millones de yenes. Debido a que esta empresa promovió los terrenos, se conocían como Mitsubishi-ga-hara (los "Campos de Mitsubishi").
Gran parte del terreno sigue bajo el control Mitsubishi Estate, y muchas empresas del Grupo Mitsubishi tienen su sede en Marunouchi.
El gobierno de Tokio construyó su sede en el antiguo han de Kōchi en 1894. Se trasladaron al actual Edificio del Gobierno Metropolitano de Tokio en Shinjuku en 1991, y en su parcela ahora está el Foro Internacional de Tokio y Toyota Tsusho Corporation. Esta zona genera aproximadamente un cuarto del PIB de Japón.
La Estación de Tokio abrió en 1914, y el Marunouchi Building en 1923. La Estación de Tokio reabrió el 1 de octubre de 2012 tras una renovación de cinco años.
Marunouchi - Wikipedia, la enciclopedia libre
Marunouchi (丸の内) is a commercial district of Tokyo located in Chiyoda between Tokyo Station and the Imperial Palace. The name, meaning "inside the circle", derives from its location within the palace's outer moat. It is also Tokyo's financial district and the country's three largest banks are headquartered there.
In 1590, before Tokugawa Ieyasu entered Edo Castle, the area now known as Marunouchi was an inlet of Edo Bay and had the name Hibiya. With the expansion of the castle, this inlet was filled, beginning in 1592.
A new outer moat was constructed, and the earlier moat became the inner moat. The area took the name Okuruwauchi ("within the enclosure").
Daimyōs, particularly shinpan and fudai, constructed their mansions here, and with 24 such estates, the area also became known as daimyō kōji ("daimyō alley"). The offices of the North and South Magistrates, and that of the Finance Magistrate, were also here.
Following the Meiji Restoration, Marunouchi came under control of the national government, which erected barracks and parade grounds for the army.
Those moved in 1890, and Iwasaki Yanosuke, brother of the founder (and later the second leader) of Mitsubishi, purchased the land for 1.5 million yen. As the company developed the land, it came to be known as Mitsubishi-ga-hara (the "Mitsubishi Fields"). Much of the land remains under the control of Mitsubishi Estate, and the headquarters of many companies in the Mitsubishi Group are in Marunouchi.
The government of Tokyo constructed its headquarters on the site of the former Kōchi han in 1894. They moved it to the present Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building in Shinjuku in 1991, and the new Tokyo International Forum and Toyota Tsusho Corporation now stands on the site. Nearly a quarter of Japan's GDP is generated in this area.
Tokyo Station opened in 1914, and the Marunouchi Building in 1923. Tokyo Station is reopened on 1 October 2012 after a 5 year refurbishment.
Much of the area was damaged in the deadly 1974 Mitsubishi Heavy Industries bombing.
Marunouchi - Wikipedia
後楽園の流店。中央に水路を通し、色彩に富んだ奇石六個を配した全国的にも珍しい建物。藩主の庭廻りや賓客の接待などで、休憩所として使われた。戦災をまぬがれた建物の一つ。
Ryuten Rest House. Pebbles of beautiful colors are scattered throughout the stream which passes through the center of the building - a rare design in Japan. It has a simple appearance and was used as a resting place for the daimyo (Japanese feudal lord) on his strolls through the garden. It is one of the garden buildings that escaped damage in World War II. (from the website)
A barren tree standing next to a crumbling wall at Kumamoto Castle.
Kumamoto Castle was built by Katō Kiyomasa, a famous late-sengoku period daimyō (feudal warlord) and a master castle builder. Yet it was the Hosokawa, who received the Katō's 530,000 koku fief after it was repossessed by the shogunate in 1632. The Hosokawa inherited one heck of a gorgeous and very formidable castle.
To put it in perspective, the grounds of the castle were a massive 980,000 square meters, and its perimeters covered an area out to 5.3 km. There were 49 turret towers, 18 tower gates and 29 regular castle gates.
The castle survived the Edo period without falling victim to fire or natural disasters, but in 1877, just before the start of the Satsuma rebellion, an accidental fire did break out that gutted the main keep, the palace and other important structures. Then in February of that same year, a rebel army from Satsuma (Kagoshima Prefecture), led by Saigō Takamori, laid siege to the castle for nearly two months. The castle was defended by the Imperial Japanese Army and withheld the siege, but more buildings were destroyed during the fighting. Today's castle tower is a fero-concrete reconstruction, but the honmaru goten (palace) was rebuilt using traditional material and opened in 1998.
Koishikawa Kōrakuen Garden (小石川後楽園) is in Koishikawa, Bunkyō, Tokyo, adjacent to Tokyo Dome City. It is one of two surviving Edo period clan gardens in modern Tokyo, the other being Kyu Shiba Rikyu Garden, and one of the oldest and best preserved parks in Tokyo.
The construction was started in 1629 by Tokugawa Yorifusa, the daimyo (feudal lord) of Mito han, and was completed by his successor, Tokugawa Mitsukuni.
Mitsukuni named this garden "Kōraku-en" (Kōraku means "enjoying afterwards") after a Chinese teaching of "a governor should worry before people and enjoy after people". The garden shows strong Chinese character in its design, as it was influenced by the West Lake of Hangzhou. (Wikipedia)
Marunouchi (丸の内) es un barrio de Tokio situado en Chiyoda, entre la Estación de Tokio y el Palacio Imperial. El nombre, que significa "dentro del círculo", proviene de su ubicación en el foso exterior del palacio. Es el distrito financiero de Tokio, y los tres bancos más grandes de Japón tienen aquí sus sedes.
En 1590, antes de que Tokugawa Ieyasu entrara en el Castillo Edo, la zona conocida en la actualidad como Marunouchi era una ensenada de la Bahía Edo y se llamaba Hibiya. Con la expansión del castillo, se rellenó esta ensenada, lo que comenzó en 1592. Se construyó un nuevo foso exterior, y el anterior se convirtió en el foso interior. La zona recibió el nombre de Okuruwauchi ("dentro del recinto").
Los daimyo, especialmente shinpan y fudai, construyeron aquí sus mansiones, y con 24 de estas mansiones, la zona también se conocía como daimyō kōji ("callejón de los daimyo"). También estaban aquí las oficinas de los Magistrados del Norte, del Sur y de Finanzas.
Tras la Restauración Meiji, Marunouchi quedó bajo el control del gobierno nacional, quien construyó barracones y terrenos para desfiles del ejército.
El ejército se trasladó de aquí en 1890, e Iwasaki Yanosuke, hermano del fundador (y posteriormente el segundo líder) de Mitsubishi, compró los terrenos por 1,5 millones de yenes. Debido a que esta empresa promovió los terrenos, se conocían como Mitsubishi-ga-hara (los "Campos de Mitsubishi").
Gran parte del terreno sigue bajo el control Mitsubishi Estate, y muchas empresas del Grupo Mitsubishi tienen su sede en Marunouchi.
El gobierno de Tokio construyó su sede en el antiguo han de Kōchi en 1894. Se trasladaron al actual Edificio del Gobierno Metropolitano de Tokio en Shinjuku en 1991, y en su parcela ahora está el Foro Internacional de Tokio y Toyota Tsusho Corporation. Esta zona genera aproximadamente un cuarto del PIB de Japón.
La Estación de Tokio abrió en 1914, y el Marunouchi Building en 1923. La Estación de Tokio reabrió el 1 de octubre de 2012 tras una renovación de cinco años.
Marunouchi - Wikipedia, la enciclopedia libre
Marunouchi (丸の内) is a commercial district of Tokyo located in Chiyoda between Tokyo Station and the Imperial Palace. The name, meaning "inside the circle", derives from its location within the palace's outer moat. It is also Tokyo's financial district and the country's three largest banks are headquartered there.
In 1590, before Tokugawa Ieyasu entered Edo Castle, the area now known as Marunouchi was an inlet of Edo Bay and had the name Hibiya. With the expansion of the castle, this inlet was filled, beginning in 1592.
A new outer moat was constructed, and the earlier moat became the inner moat. The area took the name Okuruwauchi ("within the enclosure").
Daimyōs, particularly shinpan and fudai, constructed their mansions here, and with 24 such estates, the area also became known as daimyō kōji ("daimyō alley"). The offices of the North and South Magistrates, and that of the Finance Magistrate, were also here.
Following the Meiji Restoration, Marunouchi came under control of the national government, which erected barracks and parade grounds for the army.
Those moved in 1890, and Iwasaki Yanosuke, brother of the founder (and later the second leader) of Mitsubishi, purchased the land for 1.5 million yen. As the company developed the land, it came to be known as Mitsubishi-ga-hara (the "Mitsubishi Fields"). Much of the land remains under the control of Mitsubishi Estate, and the headquarters of many companies in the Mitsubishi Group are in Marunouchi.
The government of Tokyo constructed its headquarters on the site of the former Kōchi han in 1894. They moved it to the present Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building in Shinjuku in 1991, and the new Tokyo International Forum and Toyota Tsusho Corporation now stands on the site. Nearly a quarter of Japan's GDP is generated in this area.
Tokyo Station opened in 1914, and the Marunouchi Building in 1923. Tokyo Station is reopened on 1 October 2012 after a 5 year refurbishment.
Much of the area was damaged in the deadly 1974 Mitsubishi Heavy Industries bombing.
Marunouchi - Wikipedia
Happy Thanksgiving to all celebrating the holiday today!
Taken in Rikugien, a garden in Tokyo that was built in 1702 by the feudal lord and shogunal adviser Yanagisawa Yoshiyasu.
After the end of the feudal era, the property came to be owned by the founder of the Mitsubishi Group, Iwasaki Yatarō. The property was then donated by his family to Tokyo in 1938.
Koishikawa-Kōrakuen is a seventeenth-century garden in Koishikawa, Bunkyō, Tokyo. The garden was begun by Mito Yorifusa in 1629, and completed by his son Mito Mitsukuni. It was created with advice from the Chinese scholar Zhu Shun Shui, and incorporates elements of both Chinese and Japanese taste.
It is one of three surviving daimyō gardens of the many that were created in Edo after it became the military capital of the country, the others being the Rikugi-en and the Hama Rikyū gardens.
This garden is one of the most beautiful places I have visited in Japan. It is extremely scenic, with its bright green leaves and peaceful aura. The name "Shukkeien" translates into "shrink scenery," to depict the miniaturization of objects in nature, including mountains, valleys, forests and lakes.
This garden represents a traditional Japanese garden, and has history going back to 1620. Picturesque scenery surrounds a central pond, filled with many japanese koi fish. The flowers change each season, and in this month I was able to witness its beautiful greenery.
The garden was designed by grand tea master & grand master of garden design, Ueda Soko, for Asano Naggakira's villa, the Daimyo of Hiroshima in 1619.
参勤交代 was a practice in which the local warlords would pay a visit to the shogun (将軍, the military dictator ruling the entire Japan) of the given period. It lasted for nearly three centuries (from the early 1600's until the mid 19th century).
Normally, a warlord's close family members (wife or children) were required to remain for a certain period of time in the city of Edo (modern-day Tokyo) as hostages. "The expenditures necessary to maintain lavish residences in both places, and for the procession to and from Edo, placed financial strains on the daimyo (warlords) making them unable to wage war." (Wikipedia)
I was at the very castle yesterday, where shoguns resided - now better known as the Imperial Palace. While I was walking out of the castle, I saw a procession of "salary men" in suits. They were perhaps on their ways out as well, signaling the end of their lunch break (the Palace is surrounded by numerous office buildings). I thought it would make an interesting image to have them captured in what was once the "then-salarymen's" pathway to their master.
It is to the player's considerable advantage to have a strong force of bowmen to thin out enemy armies before the hand-to-hand fighting starts.
Bow ashigaru are cheap and plentiful. Their greatest downside is their morale — these units cannot stand up to a lot of stress and need to be well protected by dedicated melee troops.
Ammunition: 20
Attack skill: 2
Charge bonus: 2
Anti-Cavalry Skill: 0
Armor: 1
Defense skill: 1
Range: 150
Precision: 25
Loading speed: 25
Morale: 4
Special abilities: "Flaming Arrows," "Screens"
Koishikawa Kōrakuen Garden (小石川後楽園) is in Koishikawa, Bunkyō, Tokyo, adjacent to Tokyo Dome City. It is one of two surviving Edo period clan gardens in modern Tokyo, the other being Kyu Shiba Rikyu Garden, and one of the oldest and best preserved parks in Tokyo.
The construction was started in 1629 by Tokugawa Yorifusa, the daimyo (feudal lord) of Mito han, and was completed by his successor, Tokugawa Mitsukuni.
Mitsukuni named this garden "Kōraku-en" (Kōraku means "enjoying afterwards") after a Chinese teaching of "a governor should worry before people and enjoy after people". The garden shows strong Chinese character in its design, as it was influenced by the West Lake of Hangzhou. (Wikipedia)
Chinese postcard. Toshiro Mifune and Tatsuya Nakadai (left) in Yojimbo (Akira Kurosawa, 1961).
On 8 November 2025, Japanese actor Tatsuya Nakadai (1932-2025) passed away at the age of 92. He was a star actor in films by Akira Kurosawa and Masaki Kobayashi. He was top-billed in a double role in Kurosawa's epic Kagemusha (1980) and played the dying king, modelled on Lear, in Ran (Kurosawa, 1985). In his over seven-decade career, he appeared in more than 160 films and received numerous accolades.
Tatsuya Nakadai was born Motohisa Nakadai in 1932 in Tokyo, in the Japanese Empire. His father worked as a bus driver, and after he died in 1941, the family moved to Aoyama. He had no university education or training as an actor. Tall and handsome Nakadai was working as a shop assistant in Tokyo when fledging Shochiku Studios director Masaki Kobayashi discovered him by chance and gave him a small, uncredited role in Kabe atsuki heya / The Thick-Walled Room (Masaki Kobayashi, 1953-1956). The release of the film was delayed for three years due to its controversial subject matter. Around the same time, Nakadai played an uncredited samurai in Shichinin no samurai / The Seven Samurai (Akira Kurosawa, 1954). Reportedly, director Kurosawa spent more than 5 minutes lecturing on how to walk correctly as a wandering samurai for an appearance that totals about 4 seconds in duration. After the embarrassing grilling by Kurosawa, the then 19-year-old Nakadai decided to work very hard on his acting skills so as to be able to reject any future offer by the director. His official acting debut was in Hi no tori / Phoenix (Umetsugu Inoue, 1956). Soon followed roles in Kuroi kawa / Black River (Masaki Kobayashi, 1957), Arakure / Untamed (Mikio Naruse, 1957), Enjo / Conflagration (Kon Ichikawa, 1958), Hadaka no taiyo / Naked Sun (Miyoji Ieki, 1958), Kagi / The Key / Odd Obsession (Kon Ichikawa, 1959). Nakadai had his breakthrough in Masaki Kobayashi's epic anti-war trilogy Ningen no jōken / The Human Condition (1959–1961), based on the novel of the same name by Junpei Gomikawa. The trilogy, subtitled No Greater Love (1959), Road to Eternity (1959), and A Soldier's Prayer (1961), follows the life of Kaji, a Japanese pacifist and socialist, as he tries to survive in the totalitarian and oppressive world of World War II-era Japan. In the same period, Nakadai appeared in several films by Mikio Naruse, including Onna ga kaidan o noboru toki / When a Woman Ascends the Stairs (Mikio Naruse, 1960), Musume tsuma haha / Daughters, Wives and a Mother (Mikio Naruse, 1960), Tsuma to shite onna to shite / As a Wife, As a Woman (Mikio Naruse, 1960). Tatsuya Nakadai was top-billed in Aoi yaju / The Blue Beast (Hiromichi Horikawa, 1960),
By 1960, Tatsuya Nakadai had more than twenty feature films on his Shochiku résumé. He next played Unosuke, Toshiro Mifune's formidable gun-wielding opponent in the classic Yojimbo (Akira Kurosawa, 1961). That same year, he starred in the Oscar-nominated Eien no hito / Immortal Love / Bitter Spirit (Keisuke Kinoshita, 1961). He reunited with Kurosawa for the sequel to Yojimbo, Tsubaki Sanjuro / Sanjuro (Akira Kurosawa, 1961), and the kidnapping thriller Tengoku to jigoku / High and Low (Akira Kurosawa, 1963), in which he played the police inspector. With Kobayashi, he made Karami-ai / The Inheritance (Kobayashi, 1962). He won the Blue Ribbon Award for Best Actor for his performance as the ageing and vengeful ronin in Seppuku / Harakiri (Masaki Kobayashi, 1962), a role he considered his finest. He played a samurai in his 50s while he was 33. His other notable credits of the 1960s included Dai-bosatsu Toge / The Sword of Doom (Kihachi Okamoto, 1966), Tanin no kao / The Face of Another (Hiroshi Teshigahara, 1966), and the comedy Kiru / Kill! (Kihachi Okamoto, 1968) and Goyokin / Official Gold (Hideo Gosha, 1969). In Italy, he acted in the Spaghetti Western Oggi a me… domani a te / Today We Kill… Tomorrow We Die (Tonino Cervi, 1968) with Brett Halsey and Bud Spencer. It was the directorial debut of Tonino Cervi, who co-wrote the film with Dario Argento.
A lifelong stage actor, Tatsuya Nakadai founded the acting school Mumeijuku with his wife Yasuko Miyazaki in 1975. He continued performing on stage into his nineties. His films of the 1970s include Inochi bonifuro / Inn of Evil (Masaki Kobayashi, 1971), the crime film Shussho iwai / The Wolves (Hideo Gosha, 1971), Fumo chitai / Barren Zone (Satsuo Yamamoto, 1976), and Ni hyaku san kochi / The Battle of Port Arthur (Toshio Masuda, 1980). Nakadai appeared in two more Kurosawa films in the 1980s. In the epic Kagemusha / Shadow Warrior (Akira Kurosawa, 1980), Nakadai plays both the titular thief turned body-double and the famous daimyō Takeda Shingen, whom the thief is tasked with impersonating. This dual role helped him win his second Blue Ribbon Award for Best Actor. The film won the Palme d'Or at the 1980 Cannes Film Festival (tied with All That Jazz). It was also nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film and received other honours. In the historical epic Ran (Akira Kurosawa, 1985), Nakadai plays another daimyō, Hidetora Ichimonji, an ageing Sengoku-period warlord who decides to abdicate as ruler in favour of his three sons. The role is loosely based on King Lear from Shakespeare's play 'King Lear' and inspired by the historical daimyō Mōri Motonari. Nakadai also appeared in the British war film Return from the River Kwai (Andrew V. McLaglen, 1988) about POWs of the Japanese in World War II and starring Edward Fox and Denholm Elliott
Tatsuya Nakadai co-starred with Jacky Cheung in the Science Fiction film Yiu sau dou sih / The Wicked City (Peter Mak alias Mak Tai-kit, 1992). It is a live-action film adaptation of the Japanese anime of the same name, which in turn is based on the first novel of the series of the same name by Hideyuki Kikuchi. The film was produced by Tsui Hark, who actually directed many scenes himself. Remarkable is also the Japanese Western East Meets West (Kihachi Okamoto, 1995). With Okamoto, he made many films, including Sukedachiya Sukeroku / Vengeance for Sale (Kihachi Okamoto, 2002). He also appeared in the project left behind by Kurosawa, Ame agaru / After the Rain (Takashi Koizumi, 1999). His final films included Otoko-tachi no Yamato / Yamato (Junya Sato, 2005), Haru to no tabi / Haru’s Journey (Masahiro Kobayashi, 2010), Jinrui shikin / Human Trust (Junji Sakamoto, 2013), Umibe no ria /Lear on the Shore (Masahiro Kobayashi, 2017) and Kikyo / Kikyo – The Return (Shigemichi Sugita, 2019). In 1996, he received the Medal with Purple Ribbon, and in 2015, he received the Order of Culture. His final stage performance was in May 2025 in Noto, Ishikawa, as part of a stage tour. Nakadai died from pneumonia in a Tokyo hospital on 8 November 2025, at the age of 92. His daughter was at his side at the time of his death. His death was disclosed three days later, on 11 November.
Sources: Chuck Stephens (In Focus), Hans Beerekamp (Het Schimmenrijk - Dutch), Wikipedia and IMDb.
And, please check out our blog European Film Star Postcards.
Kato Kiyomasa built the Goten palace in 1610 shortly after the main keep was finished in 1607. The Goten was burned down during the Satsuma Rebellion in 1877 and the reconstruction finished in 2008. The walls used to have paintings, but the exact artwork is unknown so they were left bare. The daimyo's chambers at the far end were well known and were re-decorated.
Sometimes the art on the walls was documented, but without the location. In this case, one section of the goten has displays of unattached doors with the artwork redone.
Koishikawa Kōrakuen Garden (小石川後楽園) is in Koishikawa, Bunkyō, Tokyo, adjacent to Tokyo Dome City. It is one of two surviving Edo period clan gardens in modern Tokyo, the other being Kyu Shiba Rikyu Garden, and one of the oldest and best preserved parks in Tokyo.
The construction was started in 1629 by Tokugawa Yorifusa, the daimyo (feudal lord) of Mito han, and was completed by his successor, Tokugawa Mitsukuni.
Mitsukuni named this garden "Kōraku-en" (Kōraku means "enjoying afterwards") after a Chinese teaching of "a governor should worry before people and enjoy after people". The garden shows strong Chinese character in its design, as it was influenced by the West Lake of Hangzhou. (Wikipedia)
The famous "balcony" on the temple before the current reconstruction started. The temple was founded here in 798 but these structures date back to 1633, when the veranda was also built. Most of Kyoto's temples are of 17th Century vintage, as the Tokugawa shogun had the various daimyo reconstruct temples all over Japan to deplete any excess funds that could have been used to hire soldiers. Japanese carpentry uses no nails and there are none here.
Picture taken before Japan opened the floodgates to "World Heritage Site" pilgrims who now line up all the way to the entrance down the hill.
This card is of a Japanese woman, a courtesan O-Koto-San. Here she has a smoke whilst thinking of her soldier lover. Meanwhile her made prepares her bed.
This is a post card, part of a series of at least 12 cards, from about 1905-1910 about O-Koto-San and I will post all those that I have as time goes by - I have twelve of them depicting various scenes from the daily life of this courtesan, but what were courtesans?
The wives of the daimyo or feudal lords subbordinate to the Shogun and also the wives of high-ranking samurai, followed Confucian ideals being expected to dress modestly and serve their husbands. These high position men looked to courtesans to find passion and love. The men wanted to believe that their favourite courtesans were in love with them, and they were sold as such.
So basically a courtesan was a high-class and much superior prostitute with refined entertainment skills and often with training in the traditional arts.
This is the view of the castle at present,which the first original one was much bigger than this.
Tsuruga Castle (鶴ヶ城 Tsuruga-jo)
Aizuwakamatsu Castle (会津若松城, Aizuwakamatsu-jo), also known as Tsuruga Castle (鶴ヶ城 Tsuruga-jo) is a traditional castle in northern Japan, at the center of the town of Aizuwakamatsu, in Fukushima Prefecture.
It is sometimes simply called the White Crane castle and is situated in a gorgeous section of Japan. With nearby Mount Bandai and lake Inawashiro this area offers some breath taking scenery. The castle stands on a hill 3km. east of Aizu- Wakamatsu Station. It is surrounded by a thousand cherry trees, innumerable evergreens, a stone wall and moat. The white tower rising high in the blue sky provides a splendid view of the entire Aizu valley. The 5-story castle serves as a local history museum. The first floor contains materials pertaining to the Buddhist culture in the Aizu area and Aizu rulers'. The second floor holds famous antique lacquer ware and pottery. The third floor holds items connected with the Boshin War are located on the next two floors. The forth floor focuses on the famous Byakkotai pictures, the White Tiger Group, a group of loyal youths who met a tragic end during the war. The fifth floor functions as an observation platform. There is an interesting display of antiques in the long one-story wing Hashiri Nagaya, which extends from the southern end of the castle.
A one Ashina Naomori constructed the first building, in 1384. In ca. 1593, Gamou Ujisato finished building the rest of the castle and included name of Tsurugajo (White heron castle). The stone wall, also completed at that time, still remains to be the foundation of the entire castle area even 400 years later. During the end of the Edo Period, the Aizu soldiers were involved in the Boshin Civil War, which continued from the Toba Fushimi War. They were defeated after about one month of fighting to protect the castle. The new government destroyed the castle in 1874, (the 7th year of Meiji). Tsurugajo Castle was rebuilt in 1965 in accordance with its original design. It symbolizes the samurai culture in Aizu-Wakamatsu, the oldest town in Fukushima Prefecture.
Date Masamune, the greatest warlord of the Tohoku area, had struggled against the Ashina clan for years, and finally captured the castle in 1589. But soon he submitted to Toyotomi Hideyoshi and gave it up in 1590.
In 1592 a new lord, Gamo Ujisato, redesigned the castle and gave it the name Tsuruga Castle, although the populace also referred to it as Aizu Castle or Wakamatsu Castle.
During the Edo period, it was the seat of the daimyo of the Aizu Han. The founder was Hoshina Masayuki, the son of shogun Tokugawa Hidetada and the grandson of Ieyasu. He and his successors bore the Matsudaira name. The castle was an important Tokugawa stronghold in the Tohoku Region of Honshu.
Koishikawa Kōrakuen Garden (小石川後楽園) is in Koishikawa, Bunkyō, Tokyo, adjacent to Tokyo Dome City. It is one of two surviving Edo period clan gardens in modern Tokyo, the other being Kyu Shiba Rikyu Garden, and one of the oldest and best preserved parks in Tokyo.
The construction was started in 1629 by Tokugawa Yorifusa, the daimyo (feudal lord) of Mito han, and was completed by his successor, Tokugawa Mitsukuni.
Mitsukuni named this garden "Kōraku-en" (Kōraku means "enjoying afterwards") after a Chinese teaching of "a governor should worry before people and enjoy after people". The garden shows strong Chinese character in its design, as it was influenced by the West Lake of Hangzhou. (Wikipedia)
Shinjuku Gyo-en (新宿御苑) is a large park and garden in Shinjuku and Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan. It was originally a residence of the Naitō family in the Edo period. Afterwards, it became a garden under the management of the Imperial Household Agency of Japan. It is now a national park under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of the Environment.
History
The shōgun bequeathed this land to Lord Naitō (daimyō) of Tsuruga in the Edo period who completed a garden here in 1772. After the Meiji Restoration the house and its grounds were converted into an experimental agricultural centre. It then became a botanical garden before becoming an imperial garden in 1879. The current configuration of the garden was completed in 1906. Most of the garden was destroyed by air raids in 1945, during the later stages of World War II. The garden was rebuilt after the war.
The jurisdiction over the Imperial Palace Outer Garden and the Kyoto imperial garden was transferred to the Ministry of Health and Welfare (now part of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare) in 1947.
On May 21, 1949, the garden became open to the public as a national park. It came under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of the Environment in January 2001, with the official English name "Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden". The official Japanese name remains Shinjuku Gyoen, where gyoen means "imperial garden".
In 1989, the Shinjuku Gyoen was the site chosen for the funeral rites of Emperor Shōwa before he was buried at the Musashi Imperial Graveyard.
Features
The garden, which is 58.3 hectares in area with a circumference of 3.5 km, blends three distinct styles: a French Formal and English Landscape in the north and to the south a Japanese traditional. A traditional Japanese tea house can be found within the gardens.
The garden is a favourite hanami (cherry-blossom viewing) spot, and large crowds can be present during cherry blossom season.
Flora
The garden has more than 20,000 trees, including approximately 1,500 cherry trees which bloom from late March (Shidare or Weeping Cherry), to early April (Somei or Tokyo Cherry), and on to late April (Kanzan Cherry). Other trees found here include the majestic Himalayan cedars, which soar above the rest of the trees in the park, tulip trees, cypresses, and plane trees, which were first planted in Japan in the Imperial Gardens.
Horticulture work has been going on in the greenhouses in the garden since 1892. The present greenhouse, built in the 1950s has a stock of over 1,700 tropical and subtropical plant species on permanent display.