The Shinkyūsha (神厩舎), or Sacred Stable, the only unlacquered structure at Tōshō-gū, houses a carved white horse and today, for several hours a day, a horse gifted by the New Zealand government.

The stable's crossbars is adorned with an eight-panel series of allegorical reliefs carved by Hidari Jingoro, using the monkey to depict man's life cycle. It was custom to keep a monkey in the stable until the Muromachi period, as were long believed to be guardians of horses.

Most iconic is the second panel, with the carving of sanbiki no saru (三匹の猿), literally Three Wise Monkeys, who together embody the proverbial principal to "see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil." The three monkeys demonstrating the three principles of Tendai Buddhism are Mizaru, covering his eyes, who sees no evil; Kikazaru, covering his ears, who hears no evil; and Iwazaru, covering his mouth, who speaks no evil.

Nikkō Tōshō-gū (日光東照宮) is a lavishly decorated shrine complex consisting of more than a dozen Shinto and Buddhist buildings set in a beautiful forest. It was initially built during the Edo period in 1617 by Tokugawa Hidetada (徳川 秀忠), the second shogun, as a simple mausoleum for his father, Tokugawa Ieyasu (徳川 家康) (1543-1615), the founder of the Tokugawa shogunate. Ieyasu was buried on Mount Kunozan on his death in 1616, but according to his testament, his remains were to be moved to their last resting place at Nikko. It was enlarged during the first half of the 187th century by Ieyasu’s grandson, Tokugawa Iemitsu (徳川 家光), the third shogun. Some 15,000 craftsmen were employed on the construction of the Toshogu Shrine, most of them coming from Kyoto and Nara, where there was a great flowering of architecture at that period. The result was a complex of buildings with an over-lavish profusion of decoration, incorporating all the sumptuousness of the preceding Momoyama period.

Today the shrine is dedicated to the spirits of of Ieyasu and two other of Japan's most influential historical personalities—Toyotomi Hideyoshi (豊臣 秀吉) (1536-1598), a daimyo (territorial lord) in the Sengoku period who unified political factions of Japan; and Minamoto no Yorimoto (源 頼朝) (1147-1199), the founder and the first shogun of the Kamakura Shogunate, ruling from 1192 until 1199.

Together with Rinnō-ji and Futarasan Shrine, Tōshō-gū forms the Shrines and Temples of Nikkō UNESCO World Heritage Site.

This is one of the most exiting places I’ve stumbled across in a while.

The area called 新橋 Shinbashi today refers to the area around present day 新橋駅 Shinbashi Station. In the Edo Period, this area was referred to as 烏森 Karasumori, literally “Crow Forest.” The name change to Shinbashi, literally “New Bridge,” was the result of the re-location of the services of the former 新橋停車場 Shinbashi Depot (originally located in present day Shiodome) to the current site in 1909. The new station took the name 烏森駅 Karasumori Station in 1909. In 1914, the old depot was shut down and Karasumori Station was renamed Shinbashi Station. However, one of the main exits is still called Karasumori.

But where did this name, Crow Forest, come from? There’s a lot of legend behind this, but in 935, a high ranking Kantō samurai of imperial descent named 平将門Taira no Masakado began agitating against the court nobility in Kyōto. His actions culminated in all out rebellion in 939 and he was eventually killed in battle in 940. His most famous legend is that his head was brought to Kyōto to be displayed along with a list of his treasonous crimes. But being a Kantō warrior, his head become enraged and flew back to Kantō and (according to the most popular story) still rests in the haunted 首塚 head mound in 大手町 Ōtemachi, literally the front door of 江戸城 Edo Castle. (Many say his spirit still haunts the area to this day.)

Anyhoo, the forces that put down Masakado’s rebellion were led by平貞盛 Taira no Sadamori and 藤原秀郷 Fujiwara no Hidesato. Legend says that before the final attack against Masakado, Hidesato prayed for victory at an unnamed 稲荷神社 Inari shrine (tutelary kami of provincial governors and eventually of 大名 daimyo, feudal lords) in 武蔵国 Musashi Province. Inari is usually depicted as a fox.

After praying for victory, a white fox came to Hidesato’s camp and gave him some magical arrows with white feathers – as foxes are known to do from time to time. Hidesato took the magical arrows and reigned hell down upon the Masakado’s rebel forces – as people with magic arrows are known to do from time to time. In the end, he routed the rebels, took Masakado’s head, and sent it to Kyōto for the imperial court to see as evidence of his victory.

Wanting to pay homage to the white fox, clearly an incarnation of an Inari kami, he set out to establish a shrine but he wasn’t sure what place would please Inari. One night, while he slept, the white fox came to him in a dream and explained the place where many birds gather is always sacred (this may be a folk tale referencing Shintō terminology, as every shrine is marked by a gate called a 鳥居 torii “birds are here”). The shrine was called 烏森稲荷神社 Karasumori Inari Shrine.

There is actually some confusion as to where the shrine Hidesato established was, but the shrine in Shinbashi contends that the original location was in 桜田村 Sakurada Village near where the infamous 桜田門 Sakuradamon gate is has been located since the Edo Period. According to that theory, at some point, most likely when castle building efforts really got going, the shrine was relocated to the present day location. Some say that the shrine has always been at its present location and that Sakurada Village comprised a much bigger area in the pre-Tokugawa years. I believe there may be a little truth in both stories.

Japanese religion has always been syncretic (blended) and a shrine with close ties to a victorious samurai would have inevitably taken a Buddhist stance during the Edo Period when Buddhism was seen – particularly in Eastern Japan – as being more “samurai” and less “imperial court.” In the Edo Period, the shrine buildings took on a typical 権現造り Gongen-zukuri style typical of syncretic Shintō-Buddhism of the day. However, in 1873, in one of its first moves to establish State Shintō, the Meiji Government concocted the 神仏分離 Separation of Shintō & Buddhism Edict. By this law, syncretic religious institutions were required by law to pick a side – you’re either Buddhist or you’re Shintō. No fence-sitting allowed, bitches.

I don’t know why. since 稲荷 Inari is a Shintō kami, but it’s at this time that the shrine changed its name from 烏森稲荷神社 Karasumi Inari Shrine to 烏森神社 Karasumi Shrine. When I visited, I didn’t see any imagery typical of an Inari shrine within the precinct. So it’s clearly not an Inari shrine anymore. That said, the shrine also doesn’t exhibit any traits of a Gongen-zukuri site (presumably, these didn’t survive the Great Kantō Earthquake or the Firebombing of WWII). The modern structure is concrete and uniquely illuminated. Most shrines are covered by trees and afforded some natural space, but this one is surrounded by office buildings and family-owned restaurants. The sacred space is marked by the shadows of high rise buildings, a rare wooden torii, and a maze of alleys that make the shrine an urban oasis, well off the beaten path and yet hiding in plain sight.

The shrine is not obvious. And even though it’s hidden in a maze of alleys, its precincts are still fairly large and apparently well-funded. They illuminate the area year round and supposedly have a special Christmas illumination (there’s some syncretism for ya!). They also have a somewhat famous 夏祭り Summer Festival. The side streets and alleys that surround the shrine are populated by traditional Shōwa Era restaurants that seat anywhere from 8-20 customers max. The prices seem to be reasonable and the owners have been passing the shop down through the family. It’s decidedly 下町 “low city” despite its 山手 “high city” history in the Edo Period. In short, this is Salaryman Central. The immediate area surrounding the shrine is frequented by locals and old people and foodies and is in direct contrast with the drinking and whoring that typifies the main thoroughfares in Shinbashi.

This shrine and this area are highly recommended.

Awa Odori is popularly believed to have begun in 1587. Lord Hachisuka Iemasa, the daimyo of Awa Province hosted a drunken celebration of the opening of Tokushima Castle. The locals, having consumed a great amount of sake, began to drunkenly weave and stumble back and forth. Others picked up commonly available musical instruments and began to play a simple, rhythmic song, to which the revelers invented lyrics, alternately praising Lord Hachisuka and encouraging others to join the dance. (Source: Wikipedia)

Held at Higashi-rinkan, Sagamihara, Kanagawa, Japan

Special thanks to Riza for the invitation and for the Sunday dinner.

[Photo Archive] August 2007

Location: Kanagawa, Japan

Camera: Nikon D80 + 18-135mm lens kit

© Kalandrakas | www.jessleecuizon.com</

🗻 ϟ ⏳ 🐢

->> Higher Rez file added. Cropped and isolated image below.

Printed in the U.S.A. ..

..seems as if the Third TMNT flick was distributed by 'Fox' in 1993 overseas.

Thai embossed lobby cards. Used n' abused.. but not to shabby.

The cards are also about an inch or son in diameter than standard North American lobby cards.

The coolest departure for the turtles cuz it had absolutely nuthin' to do with the Foot Clan. Hand down a killer show and allot of fun. Bite me !!

****************************************

-->> Third times a charm. Well for tOkKa it was.. and the TMNTs.

After the destruction of the Shredder ..the Turtles were set up for some return to normalcy.

Sadly there's no such thing in the sewers and subways of NYC.

April has a gift for Splinter ..a mysterious antiqueJapanese Egg Timer she picked up from thrift shopping.

But that 'Egg Timer' is actually a legendary Time Scepter.. when April acidentally activates the ancient device.. she's blasted to the 1600s and to feudal Japan.. and the young,dashing Prince Kenshin has taken her place..

..only the Turtles can save time-trip and save April ..it looks like another adventure for the green guys.

Little do they know of the overwhelming task (s) that lay before them before they can get back .. in time.

~ t

• •

* Creative Commons licensing has been attributed to this piece. It IS expected, please that credit be attributed to TOKKA when sharing.

Fantastic exhibition of japanese armors in Guimet museum.

Daimyos were the Lords of War.

Kensō-ji is a Buddhist temple of the Sōtō Sect which was established in the hilly Azabu District in the suburbs of Edo in honor of Nabeshima Tadatsugu, son of Nabeshima Katsushige, after his death from smallpox in 1635. Katsushige was the first lord of Saga Domain in Hizen Province (modern day Kyūshū) and was a loyal general to the shōgun Tokugawa Ieyasu. His son built the temple to serve as the Nabeshima bodaiji, or funerary temple. There is a large graveyard located behind Kensō-ji were the daimyō and direct relatives of the Nabeshima clan are interred. When Katsushige died in 1657, 7 of his most loyal retainers committed suicide in an act called 殉死 (junshi) in order to follow their master in death. Behind Katsushige's large grave, there are 7 stone monuments "attending" him in Buddhism's endless cycle of death and rebirth.

🗻 ϟ ⏳ 🐢

->> Higher Rez file added. Cropped and isolated image below.

Printed in the U.S.A. ..

..seems as if the Third TMNT flick was distributed by 'Fox' in 1993 overseas.

Thai embossed lobby cards. Used n' abused.. but not to shabby.

The cards are also about an inch or son in diameter than standard North American lobby cards.

The coolest departure for the turtles cuz it had absolutely nuthin' to do with the Foot Clan. Hand down a killer show and allot of fun. Bite me !!

****************************************

-->> Coming from a much different era.. Kenshin mistakes the Teen Greens for the ancient turtle/monkey-like creatures of the river in Legend and Japanese myth.. :: The Kappa

Mikey:: "..What's a Kappa ?!"

Splinter::"Ancient Japanese Demons.. some were good. And some were very Very bad."

..luckily for Kenshin..these are the 'Kappa' of predicted in the scrolls by the profits..and these Kapppas are on our side.. !!

Splinter and Casey take care of the ancient visitors from the past. And Casey shows the visiting Honour Gaurds all the hospitality of the present day :: including Foosball,video games, and of coarse ..Hockey.

Splinter also reveals that he's better at Elvis trivia than anyone could have never imagined !!

~ t

Expo Daymio - Seigneurs de la Guerre au Japon.

Musée Guimet (MNAAG), Paris (75).

Armure de Matsudaira Tadakatsu 松平忠雄, daimyo du domaine de Shimabara (島原市, Shimabara-shi), province de Hizen (肥前国, Hizen no kuni), Japon.

On y voit la cuirasse, appelée dô (胴).

Le kabuto (casque, 兜, 冑) et ses ornements.

La jupe : kusazuri (草摺)

Le masque : menpō ou mempō (面頬).

Épaulière : sode (袖).

Genouillère : tateage (立挙)

Jambière : suneate (臑当)

Soleret : kōgake (甲懸)

Cuissard : haidate (佩楯)

Matériaux utilisés : fer, cuir, laque, soie.

Scenery at Genkyū-en Garden at the base of Hikone Castle, Shiga Prefecture-Japan.

by Kuroda Seiki

In this Japanese name, the surname is Yamauchi.

Marquis

Yamauchi Toyonori

山内豊範

Yamauchi Toyonori, post-Meiji restoration

16th Daimyō of Tosa Domain

In office

1859–1868

Monarchs:

Shōgun Tokugawa Iemochi

Shōgun Tokugawa Yoshinobu

Preceded by Yamauchi Toyonobu

Succeeded by < position abolished >

Imperial Governor of Kōchi

In office

1869–1871

Monarch Emperor Meiji

Personal details

Born May 12, 1846

Died July 13, 1886 (aged 40)

Spouse(s):

Daughter of Mōri Narihiro of Choshu

Daughter of Uesugi Narinori of Yonezawa

Parent

Yamauchi Toyoshige (father)

Marquis Yamauchi Toyonori (山内豊範, May 12, 1846 – July 13, 1886) was the 16th and final daimyō of Tosa Domain in Shikoku, Japan (modern-day Kōchi Prefecture). Before the Meiji Restoration, his courtesy title was Sakone-no-shosho, and his Court rank was Junior Fourth Rank, Lower Grade.

Biography

Yamauchi Toyonori was the 14th son of Yamauchi Toyoshige, 12th daimyō of Tosa Domain.

In 1848, his elder brothers Yamauchi Toyoteru (13th daimyō) and Yamauchi Toyoatsu (14th daimyō) died of illness within a few months of one another.

At the time, Toyonori was only age three, so the clan elders decided to make his elder cousin, Yamauchi Toyoshige the 15th daimyō.

Yamauchi Toyoshige (also known as Yamauchi Yōdō) was forced into retirement in 1859 due to the Ansei Purge undertaken by the tairō Ii Naosuke, making Toyonori the 16th daimyō.

Yamauchi Yōdō continued to wield political power behind-the-scenes, especially after his ban was officially lifted in 1862, and Toyonori's hope of activity was severely limited. He was sent to Kyoto to guard the Imperial Palace in 1862.

In 1869, together with representatives from Satsuma Domain and Chōshū Domain, he officially returned the domain to the control of Emperor Meiji.

During the Boshin War, he sought a pardon for his father-in-law Uesugi Narinori of Yonezawa Domain.

After the Meiji Restoration and the abolition of the han system in 1871 he was active in Kochi Prefecture in the development of railroads and banks.

He received the peerage title of marquis under the kazoku peerage system in 1884. He died at the age of 41.

His eldest son, Yamauchi Toyokage inherited his title, and served in the Imperial Japanese Army during the Russo-Japanese War and subsequently as a member of the House of Peers.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yamauchi_Toyonori

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Also:

Yamauchi Toyonori (山内豊範)

Toyonori YAMAUCHI (May 12, 1846 – July 13, 1886) was a Daimyo (Japanese feudal lord) who lived during the end of the Edo Period. He was the sixteenth (last) lord of the Tosa Domain.

Marquess

He was the eleventh son of the twelfth lord Toyoshige YAMAUCHI. His lawful wife was a daughter of Nobuyuki MORI (third son of Narihito MORI) and his second wife was a daughter of Narinori UESUGI. His offspring include Toyokage YAMAUCHI (first son), Toyoshizu YAMAUCHI (third son), Toyonaka YAMAUCHI (fourth son) and a daughter (lawful wife of Masuteru OZEKI). He was a cousin of Sanetomi SANJYO. His childhood name was Kumagoro. Shikajiro. His Go (pseudonym) was Hoyo.

He was born on May 12, 1846. His elder brother Toyoteru YAMAUCHI (thirteenth lord), Toyoatsu YAMAUCHI (fourteenth lord) died in succession in 1848 and he was seen as the successor as a younger brother but since he was only 3 years old, Toyonobu (Yodo) YAMAUCHI, who was from a branch line, became the family head. Toyonobu was sent into early retirement as punishment during Naosuke II's Ansei no Taigoku (suppression of extremists by the Shogunate) on February 26, 1859 and Toyonori succeeded as family head and became the lord of domain.

However, Toyonobu was allowed out of his retirement in 1862 and Toyonori did not take active part in ruling because the actual power was placed in Toyobnobu's hands. He received an secret imperial command for police escort in Kyoto in 1862. Together with Satsuma and Chosu domains, he signed the return of lands and people to the emperor in 1869. He worked to get a pardon for his father-in-law, Narinori UESUGI of the Yonezawa Domain when he was being chased by the Imperial army, because of his commitment to the Boshin Civil War.

After Haihan-chiken (abolition of feudal domains and establishment of prefectures), he contributed to the establishment of railway and bank projects. He died on July 13, 1886, at 41 years of age. His grave is at Shinyo-ji Temple, Tenjin-cho, Kochi City, Kochi Prefecture. He was succeeded by his first son, Toyokage.

www.japanesewiki.com/person/Toyonori YAMAUCHI.html

The story of the 47 Ronin is one of the most celebrated in the history of the samurai. This was perhaps all the more so because it occurred at a time when the samurai class was struggling to maintain a sense of itself - warriors with no war, a social class without a function.

The tale could be said to have begun with the teachings of Yamaga Soko (1622-1685), an influential theorist who wrote a number of important works on the warrior spirit and what it meant to be samurai. His writings inspired a certain Ôishi Kuranosuke Yoshio, a samurai and retainer of Asano Takumi no kami Naganori (1667-1701), who led a branch of the powerful Asano family.

It happened that Lord Asano was chosen by the shogun, Tokugawa Tsunayoshi, to be one of a number of daimyo tasked with entertaining envoys from the Imperial family. To assist him in this new duty, the Bakufu's highest ranking master of protocol, Kira Kozukenosuke Yoshinaka (1641-1702), was assigned to instruct him in matters of etiquette. Kira, it seems, was a somewhat difficult character and expected Asano to compensate him monetarily for the trouble, which Asano held was simply his duty. The two grew to dislike one another intensely, and Kira made every effort to embarrass his student. Finally, in April of 1702, the situation exploded within the shogun's palace - Kira insulted Asano once again, prompting the latter to draw his sword and swing at him. Kira was only wounded in the attack and Asano was promptly placed under confinement.

Striking another man in anger was against the law - doing so within the shogun's palace was unthinkable. Asano made little effort to defend himself during questioning except to say that he bore the shogun no ill will and only regretted that he had failed to kill Kira.

After the o-metsuke (inspector-generals) had completed their investigation of the matter, the shogunate passed down a sentence of death on Asano, ordering him to slit his belly at once. The shogun also decreed that his 50,000-koku fief at Akô in Harima was to be confiscated and his brother Daigaku placed under house arrest.

When the news of the unfortunate event reached Asano's castle, his retainers were thrown into an uproar and argued heatedly over what to do next. Some favored accepting their lot quietly and dispersing as ronin, while another group called for a defense of the castle and an actual battle with the government. Ôishi Kuranosuke, who urged the retainers to give up the castle peacefully and struggle to rehabilitate the Asano family while at the same time preparing to take revenge on Kira, sounded the view that prevailed.

Accordingly, a band of Asano retainers - now ronin - set out on a carefully planned road to revenge. Kira was no fool, and expecting some sort of attempt on his life by the Asano men increased his personal guard. Ôishi's scheme was therefore to lull their quarry into complacency, biding their time while they waited for the right moment. To this end the ronin hid away a cache of weapons and armor before ostensibly dispersing, some taking up menial jobs while others, like Ôishi himself, let it seem that they had lost any concern for their futures. Ôishi left his wife and began frequenting all of Edo's houses of ill repute, carousing with prostitutes and engaging in drunken brawls. On one occasion, a samurai from Satsuma is supposed to have come across Ôishi drunk in the street and spat upon him, saying that he was no real samurai.

Needless to say, Kira began to doubt that he was in any real danger, and within a year had relaxed his guard. It was at that point that the ronin struck. 47 of them gathered on 14 December 1702 and, after donning the armor and taking up the weapons from the cache, they set out on their revenge on that same snowy night. Once at Kira's Edo mansion, they divided into two groups and attacked, with one group entering through the rear of the compound while the rest forced their way through the front, battering the gate down with a mallet. Kira's men, many of whom were killed or wounded, were taken completely by surprise but did put up a spirited resistance (one of the ronin was killed in the attack), though ultimately to no avail: Kira was found in an outhouse and presented to Ôishi, who offered him the chance to commit suicide. When Kira made no reply, Ôishi struck off his head with the same dagger that Asano had used to kill himself with. Kira's head was then put in a bucket and carried to the Sengakuji, where Asano was buried. After Ôishi and the others had given the bloody trophy to the spirit of Asano, they turned themselves in.

The assassination of Kira placed the government in a difficult situation. After all, the 46 survivors now awaiting their fate had lived up to the standards of loyalty expected of true samurai and the ideals propounded by such men as Yamaga Soko. Additionally, the decision to order Asano to commit suicide and confiscate his domain while taking no action against Kira had not been popular (at least one of the inspectors at the time had been demoted for protesting the verdict). Nonetheless, the Bakufu decided that the maintenance of order would once again have to prevail, and so the ronin were ordered to commit suicide - a sentence suggested by the famous Confucian scholar Ogyû Sorai (1666-1728). They were at this time divided up into four groups under guard by four different daimyo, yet once they had all died, their bodies were buried together at the Sengakuji.1 Legend has it that the Satsuma samurai who had spit upon Ôishi in the street came to the temple and slit his own belly to atone for his insults.

The Revenge of the 47 Ronin continued to spark controversy throughout the Edo Period. One view had it that Ôishi and his men had in fact erred in waiting as long as they had, that in so doing they risked Kira dying (he was, after all, over 60) and their efforts coming to naught. This was, for example, the view of Yamamoto Tsunetomo (author of the famed Hagakure).2 The Confucian scholar Sato Naotaka (1650-1719) criticized the ronin for taking action at all, as the shogun's decision to order Asano to commit suicide should have ended the matter there and then. He also shared Tsunetomo's belief that the ronin ought to have commited suicide at the Sengakuji once their deed was done. In giving themselves up to be judged, they appeared to have hoped to receive a light sentence and therefore continue living -a shameful objective, given their crimes. At the same time, Naotaka reserved his harshest words for Kira, whom he called a coward and whose precipitation of the whole affair had led to so many deaths.

Other writers did not share those views. Men like Asami Yasuda (1652-1711) defended the actions of the ronin as being appropriate (if not actually challenging the Bakufu's decisions) and Chikamatsu wrote a favorable play (Chushin-gura) that became an instant and timeless classic. In the end, the Ôishi Kuranosuke and his ronin became the stuff of legend, and continue to spawn books, movies, and television shows at a prodigious rate. The Sengakuji is still a popular spot in Tokyo and a place for modern admirers of what many feel were the finest examples of samurai loyalty to emerge from the Edo Period.

Mamiana Inari-sha is a small Shintō shrine housing a kami named 狸穴稲荷大明神 Mamiana Inari Daimyōjin. The shrine is relatively obscure in the grand scale of the history of Edo-Tōkyō. And as far as Inari Shrines go, this is just a tiny one in the Shiba-Mita-Azabu areas which is literally teeming with Inari Shrines.

The shrine is located in a shaded grove in 狸穴公園 Mamiana Kōen (Mamiana Park). The area is traditionally called 麻布狸穴町 Azabu-Mamiana-chō found at the bottom of Mamiana Hill between Iikura and Azabu-Jūban. The shrine is well known to residents of the immediate area, but it’s so minor and so off the beaten path, that the average Tōkyōite wouldn’t know or wouldn't care about it.

I’ve mentioned before that the worship of Inari was originally tied to daimyō class. Inari was seen as a tutelary kami of the daimyō and his clan and retainers. With the implementation of 参勤交代 sankin-kōtai (alternate attendance), daimyō and their retainers were forced to maintain about 3 residences in the shōgun’s capital of Edo. Shiba, Mita, and Azabu were home to many 藩邸 hantei domain residences – also called 大名屋敷 daimyō yashiki (daimyō mansions). Important samurai families, 武家 buke, lived nearby the daimyō as this real estate was both prestigious and probably helped the shōgunate keep an eye on actions of the daimyō and his retainers.

Because of this the worship of Inari spread from the upper echelons of the samurai class down to the everyday samurai by a kind of proximity effect. So if I see an Inari Shrine in certain parts of Tōkyō, I will immediately check my maps to see what daimyō had which residence in on that land. Generally speaking, anyone with an internet connection can find this information in 2 minutes as the foundation of shrines and temples are pretty well documented.

So looking into the history of Mamiana Inari-sha led me to all sorts of dead ends. For two days I scoured the internet to find out what daimyō lived on this plot of land. I figured that we could assume the first daimyō on the property would have ritually transported and re-enshrined the kami from his ancestral lands to his “embassy” in Edo. And while the area around the park was surrounded by a few lavish daimyō residences, I couldn’t find anything.

Until I looked at a map. This particular side of this particular intersection at the bottom of rhis particular hill, Mamiana-zaka (Mamiana Hill), was not home to any daimyō. There were a few large high ranking samurai families living in this area. This means the shrine was most likely built on a private samurai residence. The land could have been bought out or confiscated by the Meiji Government, but a Shintō shrine would have understandably been left behind – after all, the new government was pushing Shintō over Buddhism in an effort to bolster its claim that the emperor was a Shintō god and therefore the rightful ruler of Japan, not the Tokugawa.

So who built this shrine? I wish I could tell you. Honestly, I can’t find much online about it and nothing in any of my books. And while the paths of the streets are more or less the same today, the current geography doesn’t line up with the Edo Period plots of residential land. Also modern map making techniques don’t always match up exactly with Edo Period maps… at least not the ones I have access to. So, I can’t tell you what family was living there (it’s most likely one of 3 families by my reckoning, but I’m not going to speculate further than that). I’m having a hard time even figuring out who built the many torii there, and who has filled in the cement reinforcements of the stone work, and who maintains the paint job on the torii and komainu. I’m not an expert on Japan’s separation of church and state laws, but while Minato Ward can pay for the upkeep of Mamiana Park, I don’t think they can constitutionally upkeep a shrine. So… this is a mystery in so many ways to me at the moment.

That said, there is a wonky folk tale about this area which involves this small shrine. If you read my blog, you already know some theories on the etymology of Mamiana. One involves a mami (a dialect term for a tanuki or a female tanuki).

The folk tale says there was a handsome commoner who lived here [in a cave here, for some reason] could take the shape of a tanuki and would sneak into Edo Castle and make his way straight to the 大奥 Ōoku (the shōgun’s harem) where he would ravish the shōgun’s women in ways that would make #TeamIenari cringe. Another samurai named Uchida Shōkurō (or possibly Masakurō or Seikurō) could see through this dude’s tanuki disguise and took it upon himself to slay the perverted shape-shifter in defense of the shōgun’s honor. Another story – sometimes tied in with the prior story – is that a soba shop owner named 作兵衛 Sakubei was saddened by the killing of a tanuki that he vowed to only serve “tanuki soba” (ie; soba served with tempura). On top of that, he built a small shrine to honor the soul of the slayed tanuki.

This folk tale is clearly bullshit, but interestingly, from Azabu-Jūban to Hamamatsu-chō there are many Edo Period soba shops.

Takayama Ukon (1552-1615) is one of the least understood yet one of the most controversial daimyō of the later part of Japan’s Sengoku (warring states) period. A devout Christian, Ukon was a darling of the Jesuits, and as a result, his overlord, the Toyotomi Hideyoshi, eyed his loyalties suspiciously, even though he had fought well on some his military campaigns. Ukon’s original fief was in Takatsuki, located in present day Osaka, where he also had a castle. Ukon was a great propagator of his faith, converting his subjects to Catholicism—although some contest that many of these conversions were forced. The Samurai Archives Wiki states that 18,000 out of Takatsuki’s 25,000 inhabitants had been converted, and when Ukon was transferred from Takatsuki to his new fief of Akashi near Kobe in 1585. However, during Hideyoshi’s conquest of Kyushu, Hideyoshi’s suspicions of Ukon’s loyalties mounted and he was dispossessed of his fief. After taking refuge with another Christian daimyō, Konshi Yukinaga, Ukon eventually became a retainer of the powerful and influential Maeda Toshiie in 1588. Apparently, Toshiie trusted him. Persecution against Christianity only got worse, and in 1614, the Tokugawa banned the religion. Rather than give up his beliefs or fight for them, Ukon decided to go into exile in the Philippines in November of that year. A mere 40 days later, he died in Manila. It’s hard for me to make any judge Takayama Ukon. Was he a good daimyō? A brave general and not a coward as some have alleged? Did he actually force his citizens to convert to Christianity and persecute Buddhists? I honestly don’t know enough about him. All I can say is that he was a firm believer in his religious faith, and for this reason, he was lionized by his foreign Jesuit contemporaries and looked to as a historical hero by today’s Catholic community in Japan.

Now about the castle, Takatsuki-jō and its fief was ruled by the Nagai family during the Edo period. If you are a fan of the Bakumatsu period and know the history of Chōshū and the role that this domain played in overthrowing the Tokugawa Bakufu, then you may be familiar with the family name of “Nagai”. And if you look at the family crest of the Nagai of Takatsuki, you’d probably say it was identical to the crest of the Mōri, the ruling daimyō family of Chōshū. That’s because it is identical and the Nagai of Takatsuki are a branch of the Nagai of Chōshū, who were asked by the Tokugawa in 1649 to take over the reins of power in Takatsuki. The Nagai, starting with the first d daimyō, Nagamasa, ruled the area until 1869.

Takatsuki was an important commercial and transportation hub because it was between Osaka and Kyoto. The Saigoku road, which connected Nishinomiya (in Kobe) with Kyoto, went through the town as well as did the Yodo River. As a result, the castle was the largest in the Hokusetsu region of what now comprises the northern parts of the Osaka municipality. The Nagai gradually increased the size of the castle and expanded its moats outward from when it was a Sengoku period castle. The castle was about 630 meters long and 510 meters wide after the last round of expansion. Unfortunately, it was destroyed after the Meiji Restoration and the castle’s stone walls were smashed into rocks to be used for the rail bed that was built to connect Osaka with Kyoto.

Sources: Samurai Archives Samurai Wiki and the Takatsuki City’s Shiroato History Museum

Armure de Matsudaira Tadakatsu 松平忠雄, daimyo du domaine de Shimabara (島原市, Shimabara-shi), province de Hizen (肥前国, Hizen no kuni), Japon.

八 幡 大 神, hachi man dai jin, devise qui indique le nom des dieux défendant Bouddha.

Expo Daymio - Seigneurs de la Guerre au Japon.

Musée Guimet (MNAAG), Paris (75).

Détails du kabuto (casque, 兜, 冑), représentant la devise

Matériaux utilisés : fer, cuir, laque, soie.

by Kuroda Seiki

Portrait of the Yamauchi Eiko, second wife of Yamauchi Toyonori, the the 16th and final daimyō of Tosa Domain in Shikoku, Japan (modern-day Kōchi Prefecture).

Toyonori first married Toshiko from the Chosu Domain in 1862, but divorced her for political reasons when the Chosu War began.

After the Meiji Restoration, they reconciled, but their relationship was difficult to repair and they divorced in 1862 (Meiji 5).

Eiko (pictured above) was his second wife, the daughter of Uesugi Narinori, the lord of the Yonezawa Domain.

The couple's relationship seems to have been good and there are photographs of Eiko that Toyonori seems to have taken, as well as records of family trips.

Collection of Kochi Castle Museum, Kochi, Japan.

Daimyo - Princes du Soleil Levant, Françoise Faconnet, 1991

- multi | blue border

- coming soon to carredeparis.com

SIGMA SD1 + 8-16mm F4.5-5.6 DC HSM

That's a hibachi charcoal brazier in the middle of the tatami room.

The Kinokuniya Hatago (Inn) isn’t certain when it first started business— the records aren’t very clear. The original owner was from Kishū and moved to the Arai post-town early in the Edo period and operated a teahouse. Somewhere along the way, the teahouse business morphed into an inn. It is known that in 1703, Kinokuniya was often used as an inn by retainers from Kishū—back in the old days, Japan was made up of about 200 different domains, each of which was like a principality not unlike Europe during its feudal days. Therefore, Japanese during the Edo period were somewhat clannish and tended to want to associate with places that had connections to their native domains. As for Kishū, it was one of the most powerful feudal domains during the Edo Period (1602-1868) and its hereditary daimyo was from a collateral branch of the Tokugawa family, making the daimyo a blood relative of the Tokugawa line of shoguns.

In the late Edo Period, the Kinokuniya was a one-story building with 12 rooms and 2 larger Japanese-style multi-purpose rooms. Unfortunately the original building burnt down in 1874 and was re-built in a traditional Edo-Period style, but this time as a two-storied building. So…the Kinokuniya is really an Edo Period-style building from the Meiji Period. Make sense? Hope so!

Paris , musée national des arts asiatiques – Guimet

Arima Noriyori Daimyo d'Obama

Vers 1770

Obama province de Wakasa , Japon

Armure dont les montures sont en cuivre argenté, comporte un casque à 62 lamelles de la fin du 16e siècle attribuable à l'école Soshu Myochin , et un masque de l'école Myochin présentant une expression féroce (style Ressei)

** View LARGE On Black **

🗻 ϟ ⏳ 🐢

->> Higher Rez file added. Cropped and isolated image below.

Printed in the U.S.A. ..

..seems as if the Third TMNT flick was distributed by 'Fox' in 1993 overseas.

Thai embossed lobby cards. Used n' abused.. but not to shabby.

The cards are also about an inch or so in diameter than standard North American lobby cards.

The coolest departure for the turtles cuz it had absolutely nuthin' to do with the Foot Clan. Hand down a killer show and allot of fun. Bite me !!

****************************************

Kickin' it ol'school..i mean like the 17th century !!Leo's awesome fighting form proves flawless and fun against the Norinaga Palace Guards and a buncha putrid pirates.

Lord Norinaga is on the attack ..as the Turtles and April race to get back home to the present. But the vicious pirate n' Back stabber..Dirk Walker has other plans .. as well as his greedy-beady eyes on the powerful Time Scepter !!

~ t

This is one of the most exiting places I've stumbled across in a while.

The area called 新橋 Shinbashi today refers to the area around present day 新橋駅 Shinbashi Station. In the Edo Period, this area was referred to as 烏森 Karasumori, literally “Crow Forest.” The name change to Shinbashi, literally “New Bridge,” was the result of the re-location of the services of the former 新橋停車場 Shinbashi Depot (originally located in present day Shiodome) to the current site in 1909. The new station took the name 烏森駅 Karasumori Station in 1909. In 1914, the old depot was shut down and Karasumori Station was renamed Shinbashi Station. However, one of the main exits is still called Karasumori.

But where did this name, Crow Forest, come from? There’s a lot of legend behind this, but in 935, a high ranking Kantō samurai of imperial descent named 平将門Taira no Masakado began agitating against the court nobility in Kyōto. His actions culminated in all out rebellion in 939 and he was eventually killed in battle in 940. His most famous legend is that his head was brought to Kyōto to be displayed along with a list of his treasonous crimes. But being a Kantō warrior, his head become enraged and flew back to Kantō and (according to the most popular story) still rests in the haunted 首塚 head mound in 大手町 Ōtemachi, literally the front door of 江戸城 Edo Castle. (Many say his spirit still haunts the area to this day.)

Anyhoo, the forces that put down Masakado’s rebellion were led by平貞盛 Taira no Sadamori and 藤原秀郷 Fujiwara no Hidesato. Legend says that before the final attack against Masakado, Hidesato prayed for victory at an unnamed 稲荷神社 Inari shrine (tutelary kami of provincial governors and eventually of 大名 daimyo, feudal lords) in 武蔵国 Musashi Province. Inari is usually depicted as a fox.

After praying for victory, a white fox came to Hidesato’s camp and gave him some magical arrows with white feathers – as foxes are known to do from time to time. Hidesato took the magical arrows and reigned hell down upon the Masakado’s rebel forces – as people with magic arrows are known to do from time to time. In the end, he routed the rebels, took Masakado’s head, and sent it to Kyōto for the imperial court to see as evidence of his victory.

Wanting to pay homage to the white fox, clearly an incarnation of an Inari kami, he set out to establish a shrine but he wasn’t sure what place would please Inari. One night, while he slept, the white fox came to him in a dream and explained the place where many birds gather is always sacred (this may be a folk tale referencing Shintō terminology, as every shrine is marked by a gate called a 鳥居 torii “birds are here”). The shrine was called 烏森稲荷神社 Karasumori Inari Shrine.

There is actually some confusion as to where the shrine Hidesato established was, but the shrine in Shinbashi contends that the original location was in 桜田村 Sakurada Village near where the infamous 桜田門 Sakuradamon gate is has been located since the Edo Period. According to that theory, at some point, most likely when castle building efforts really got going, the shrine was relocated to the present day location. Some say that the shrine has always been at its present location and that Sakurada Village comprised a much bigger area in the pre-Tokugawa years. I believe there may be a little truth in both stories.

Japanese religion has always been syncretic (blended) and a shrine with close ties to a victorious samurai would have inevitably taken a Buddhist stance during the Edo Period when Buddhism was seen – particularly in Eastern Japan – as being more “samurai” and less “imperial court.” In the Edo Period, the shrine buildings took on a typical 権現造り Gongen-zukuri style typical of syncretic Shintō-Buddhism of the day. However, in 1873, in one of its first moves to establish State Shintō, the Meiji Government concocted the 神仏分離 Separation of Shintō & Buddhism Edict. By this law, syncretic religious institutions were required by law to pick a side – you’re either Buddhist or you’re Shintō. No fence-sitting allowed, bitches.

I don’t know why. since 稲荷 Inari is a Shintō kami, but it’s at this time that the shrine changed its name from 烏森稲荷神社 Karasumi Inari Shrine to 烏森神社 Karasumi Shrine. When I visited, I didn’t see any imagery typical of an Inari shrine within the precinct. So it’s clearly not an Inari shrine anymore. That said, the shrine also doesn’t exhibit any traits of a Gongen-zukuri site (presumably, these didn’t survive the Great Kantō Earthquake or the Firebombing of WWII). The modern structure is concrete and uniquely illuminated. Most shrines are covered by trees and afforded some natural space, but this one is surrounded by office buildings and family-owned restaurants. The sacred space is marked by the shadows of high rise buildings, a rare wooden torii, and a maze of alleys that make the shrine an urban oasis, well off the beaten path and yet hiding in plain sight.

The shrine is not obvious. And even though it’s hidden in a maze of alleys, its precincts are still fairly large and apparently well-funded. They illuminate the area year round and supposedly have a special Christmas illumination (there’s some syncretism for ya!). They also have a somewhat famous 夏祭り Summer Festival. The side streets and alleys that surround the shrine are populated by traditional Shōwa Era restaurants that seat anywhere from 8-20 customers max. The prices seem to be reasonable and the owners have been passing the shop down through the family. It’s decidedly 下町 “low city” despite its 山手 “high city” history in the Edo Period. In short, this is Salaryman Central. The immediate area surrounding the shrine is frequented by locals and old people and foodies and is in direct contrast with the drinking and whoring that typifies the main thoroughfares in Shinbashi.

This shrine and this area are highly recommended.

This armor from the Edo Period belonged to a Matsura Daimyo and is on display inside the Matsura Historical Museum in Hirado, Nagasaki Prefecture, Japan.

In 1588, Katō Kiyomasa became the first to take up residence at Kumamoto Castle.

Erudite Fotography // Facebook

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 Four Accomplishments

Muromachi period (1392-1573), mid-16th century

Kano Motonobu (Japanese, 1476-1559)

Pair of six-panel screens; ink and color on pape

The descriptive quality of line is characteristic of Kano painting from all periods. Early works with figures in a landscape, like this pair of screens long in a daimyo family collection, are replete with the idiosyncratic life of the brush. Many of the ink conventions (for example, the "ax cut" strokes used in the rocks) are drawn from Chinese painting. Chinese themes, too, had great meaning in Muromachi culture. Four Accomplishments paintings, which allude to the gentlemanly pursuits of music, games of strategy, calligraphy, and painting, were a popular subject for abbots' quarters and audience rooms of the ruling classes from the Muromachi period into the nineteenth century.

Situated within pockets of space created by overhanging trees, rocks, and architecture, the human subjects in this painting are stately reminders of the spiritual appreciation of nature. Care has been taken to draw each scholar and each of the attendant youths naturalistically. At the same time, the brushwork has an energy independent of the subjects it represents.

Dr. and Mrs. Roger G. Gerry Collection, Gift of Dr. and Mrs. Roger G. Gerry, 1991 (1991.480.1,.2)

**

The Metropolitan Museum of Art's permanent collection contains more than two million works of art from around the world. It opened its doors on February 20, 1872, housed in a building located at 681 Fifth Avenue in New York City. Under their guidance of John Taylor Johnston and George Palmer Putnam, the Met's holdings, initially consisting of a Roman stone sarcophagus and 174 mostly European paintings, quickly outgrew the available space. In 1873, occasioned by the Met's purchase of the Cesnola Collection of Cypriot antiquities, the museum decamped from Fifth Avenue and took up residence at the Douglas Mansion on West 14th Street. However, these new accommodations were temporary; after negotiations with the city of New York, the Met acquired land on the east side of Central Park, where it built its permanent home, a red-brick Gothic Revival stone "mausoleum" designed by American architects Calvert Vaux and Jacob Wrey Mold. As of 2006, the Met measures almost a quarter mile long and occupies more than two million square feet, more than 20 times the size of the original 1880 building.

In 2007, the Metropolitan Museum of Art was ranked #17 on the AIA 150 America's Favorite Architecture list.

The Metropolitan Museum of Art was designated a landmark by the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission in 1967. The interior was designated in 1977.

National Historic Register #86003556

This garden was part of the Keyaki Palace where the Ii daimyo residence was on the grounds of Hikone Castle. Contstruction of this garden started in 1677 and was completed in 1679.

The garden is named after a palatial garden from Tang China. It's design is in the kaiyushiki style, which features a a central pond with a walking path that goes around it, enabling a variety of different views. This garden is truly magnificent and features numerous islands and bridges. In 1951 the Japanese government designated it a Place of Scenic Beauty.

Shunkō-in (春光院, Temple of the Ray of Spring Light) is a Zen Buddhist temple in Kyoto, Japan and belongs to the Myōshin-ji (Temple of Excellent Mind) school, which is the largest among 14 Japanese Rinzai Zen Buddhist schools. The temple was established in 1590 by Horio Yoshiharu, who was a feudal lord, or daimyō, of Matsue in present-day Shimane Prefecture. This temple houses important historical objects that reflect the multifaceted religious and artistic atmosphere in Japan from the sixteenth century onward.

The Bell of Nanban-ji is a Jesuit bell made in Portugal in 1577. The bell was used at Nanbanji Church, which was established by Jesuit Father Gnecchi-Soldo Organtino with the support of Oda Nobunaga in 1576. However, the church was destroyed in 1587 because Regent Toyotomi Hideyoshi made the first law against Christians in Japan. The Bell came to Shunkō-in during the Edo period. During World War II, the grandfather of the present vice-abbot buried the bell in the temple gardens to prevent destruction by the state authorities.

The Edo period (between 1603 and 1867) was the dark age of Japanese Christians. Christianity was banned, and Christians were systematically eliminated by the Tokugawa shogunate, or Edo bakufu. However, some Christians kept their faith and hid their religious identity. Those hidden Christians made their crosses and graves to resemble the Buddhist statues, pagodas, and stone lanterns. Shunkō-in’s hidden Christian lantern is one of those religious objects.

Several sliding door panels at Shunkōin were painted by Kanō Eigaku. Some of the paintings have Confucian teachings as their theme. Confucianism was very important to samurai, or warriors, during the Edo period because Confucianism taught samurai about honor, loyalty, and honesty.

Omizu-ya est le nom du pavillon des ablutions (Chozuya ou temizuya) du temple Taiyuin à Nikko

Cet édifice, situé derrière la porte des gardiens, a été donné par un Daimyo de Kyushu. Le plafond intérieur est décoré d'un dragon. Les visiteurs peuvent se purifier dès leur entrée dans le temple, en se rinçant les mains et la bouche.

Le Taiyuin est un temple bouddhique, intégrant des éléments shintoïstes, construit à flanc de montagne à Nikko pour servir de mausolée au shogun Iemitsu Tokugawa, petit-fils du premier shogun Ieyasu Tokugawa et 3ème shogun de la période d'Edo.

Le temple est situé à proximité du Toshogu, le mausolée de Ieyasu Tokugawa, et a été réalisé par les mêmes architectes et artistes comme le célèbre sculpteur Hidari Jingôro. La couleur du temple est le rouge vermillon.

rinnoji.or.jp/keidai/taiyuin/oku.html

Le temple Taiyuin à Nikko dans les guides du Japon.

www.vivrelejapon.com/ville-nikko/taiyuin-temple-nikko

www.mustlovejapan.com/subject/taiyuin_temple/

fr.japantravel.com/tochigi/nikko-s-taiyu-in-mausoleum/2427

Sengaku-ji Temple houses the graves of the 47 loyal retainers of Lord Asano, whose story was recently 'retold' in the 2013 movie 47 Ronin. The incidents resonate with the Japanese as it epitomises what it meant to be a samurai.

Putting aside the absurd embellishments and cultural mishmash of Hollywood's $175 milion flop, the actual Ako incident begins with two young daimyo lords being instructed by an older lord in the correct etiquette for the Tokugawa court. Historical details are not clear, and commercial issues (as the Ako clan held valuable salt fields) may have motivated the insults and the baiting. Using weapons at the Tokugawa court was forbidden, but the upshot was that Lord Asano Naganori, insulted by his older instructor, drew a dagger on Lord Kira Yoshinaka and attacked him. Kira was only slightly hurt but, questioned after the event, Asano's only regret was that he failed to kill Kira, a poor defence as Asano was then required to commit seppuku. The Ako clan and army were disbanded and the samurai, being masterless, became ronin.

Kira had an obnoxious personality; and having escaped punishment was expecting a revenge attack. The loyal retainers' strategy was to hide their weapons and pretend to be shattered by the decision. Their leader, Ôishi Kuranosuke, left his wife and began a seeming life of dissipation while planning the attack that was to follow. More than a year later, on 14 December 1702, the 47 attacked Kira's mansion, taking his army by surprise, beheading Kira, and bringing the head to Asano's grave to avenge his death.

As the retainers had done what the code of the samurai demanded, the government's decision to order them to commit suicide by seppuku, which they did on 3 February 1703, was unpopular. The story has been kept alive in kabuki plays and films including Chushingura.

The graves of the 47 retainers are here. The green roof marks Ôishi's grave, and his son's grave is out of shot on left. Incense sticks can be seen on the graves. Lord Asano's grave is nearby, and there are museums on the grounds which have likenesses of the samurai and their personal effects.

In my opinion 47 Ronin is a strange beast because it links in mixed race (Keanu Reeves' character), fantastic monsters, a sorceress and a love story in a Hollywood way which alienates the most interested audience (Japanese) without broadening it. The witchcraft and monsters look more Chinese than Japanese, and the film was a disaster in Japan. On the plus side the story's history comes through (with plenty of added nonsense), the film is well paced, the acting good, and the special effects spectacular (although irrelevant). But what were they thinking..?

Ritsurin Koen (garden) is one of the most beautiful in the country. It was built around 1650 for the daimyo walking. At the Sakura (cherry tree) period, you can cross many wedding people doing their official wedding picture in the garden.

The Engetsu-kyo Bridge is one of the most famous perspectives in Japan. The pond is full of Koi fishes.

¥950/US$8.50. Another absolutely fantastic bowl of ramen. I totally dig the Fukuokan-style ramen, which is the white tonkotsu soup with thin noodles.

Compared to Ichiran, the soup is not quite as crazy rich, but still plenty porky and plenty tasty. I like that everything comes on the side and their chasiu is much better: it has this amazing smoky flavor. I also might give a slight edge to their noodles, as their noodles are even less eggy than Ichiran's (less eggy is a plus in my book, as it doesn't interfere with the soup). They're both awesome, but if I can have only one, I probably will pick Ichiran, just for the super rich soup.

If I read the Japanese correctly, this is a special that's only available at this branch. I couldn't understand anything else so I don't know what's so special about it. I think it's the fact that it comes with all that stuff on the side.

一風堂 (大名本店) Ippudo

中央区大名1-13-14 [Google Maps]

1-13-14 Daimyo, Chuo-ku

(092) 771-0880

Paris , musée national des arts asiatiques – Guimet

Armure aux armoiries de la famille Hachisuka

Casque 16e siècle

Armure 17e siècle

Fer,laque,bois,cuir,soie

Porté par Hachisuka Munekazu 1709-1737 , 6e daimyo de Tokushima

Sur le casque Shoki personnage légendaire écartant les esprits malfaisants

Armor (Gusoku), 16th and 18th centuries; Edo period

Japanese

Lacquered iron, mail, silk, copper-gilt; H. 67 1/2 in. (171.5 cm)

This armor comes from the armory of Daté Yoshimura (1703-1746), daimyo of Sendai. The helmet bowl, signed Saotome Iye, dates from the sixteenth century; the remainder of the armor was constructed in the eighteenth century. The breastplate is inscribed inside with the armorer's name, Myochin Munesuke (1688-1735). The embossed ornament on the solid iron plates is characteristic of the Myochin school.

Gift of Bashford Dean, 1914 (14.100.172)

he Arms and Armor Galleries, last renovated in 1991, houses a collection of armor, edged weapons, and firearms that ranks with those of the other great armories of the world. It consists of approximately 15,000 objects that range in date from about 400 B.C. to the nineteenth century. Though Western Europe and Japan are the regions most strongly represented--the collection of more than five thousand pieces of Japanese armor and weapons is the finest outside Japan--the collection's geographical range touches the Near East, the Middle East, India, Central Asia, China, Southeast Asia, Indonesia, and North America.

The Metropolitan Museum of Art's permanent collection contains more than two million works of art from around the world. It opened its doors on February 20, 1872, housed in a building located at 681 Fifth Avenue in New York City. Under their guidance of John Taylor Johnston and George Palmer Putnam, the Met's holdings, initially consisting of a Roman stone sarcophagus and 174 mostly European paintings, quickly outgrew the available space. In 1873, occasioned by the Met's purchase of the Cesnola Collection of Cypriot antiquities, the museum decamped from Fifth Avenue and took up residence at the Douglas Mansion on West 14th Street. However, these new accommodations were temporary; after negotiations with the city of New York, the Met acquired land on the east side of Central Park, where it built its permanent home, a red-brick Gothic Revival stone "mausoleum" designed by American architects Calvert Vaux and Jacob Wrey Mold. As of 2006, the Met measures almost a quarter mile long and occupies more than two million square feet, more than 20 times the size of the original 1880 building.

Osaka Castle has a long and storied history. It all began in 1496 when the priest Rennyo built a small temple called the Ishiyama Gobo on the grounds of the present-day castle. In 1533, the Hongan-ji temple moved from Yamashina in Kyoto to Osaka and made the Osaka location its head temple. As Japan plunged deeper into the chaos of civil war, the Ishiyama Hongan-ji grew in spiritual, political, economic and military power, challenging the rule of daimyo and led many popular military revolts. This Buddhist temple had become a center of military might that stood in Oda Nobuanga’s path of unifying Japan and in 1570, full-scale war broke out between him and the warrior monks. After 10 long years of siege and fighting, the temple finally surrendered to the Oda, and Nobunaga ordered that the temple and its remaining fortifications be burnt to the ground in 1580. Three years later, with Nobunaga dead and Hideyoshi starting to consolidate his power, he chose Osaka as his base and began building a castle on the ruins of the Ishiyama Hongan-ji compound. The main keep was completed in 1585 and was considered the largest, most splendid and impregnable fortress of its day. In 1599, a year after the death of Hideyoshi, his son and heir, Hideyori, along with his mother Yodo, permanently moved into Osaka Castle from Fushimi Castle in Kyoto.

By 1614, it was clear that the Tokugawa were spoiling for a fight with the Toyotomi as they wanted to eliminate any threat that Hideyori could mount from this massive castle. Therefore, in the winter of that year, Ieyasu and his son, Hidetada (now Shogun) launched the winter siege of Osaka. It was a fairly inconclusive affair, but as one of the terms of peace and as a goodwill gesture towards the Tokugawa, Hideyori agreed to fill in the outer moat. However, the Tokugawa forces started filling in the inner moat, severely weakening the castle’s defenses. It was only a matter of time before fighting broke out again under these conditions, and in the summer of 1615, the Tokugawa coalition once again laid siege to the castle. After some heavy and dramatic fighting in which western artillery was used against the castle, Hideyori and Yodo committed suicide when it became clear that all was lost and the castle’s main keep erupted in flames and was completely destroyed. After two major sieges and the final fire, the castle grounds were a heap of ruins.

However, Osaka was an important economic and political center and in 1620, the Tokugawa Shogunate decided to rebuild the castle. In 1626, a new white-colored main keep was built, symbolizing a new age for the castle. In the Toyotomi period, the color of the keep had been black. By 1629 the remaining structures were completed. Bad luck continued to dog the castle and in 1665 lightning struck the main keep and it was destroyed. Through the years, lightning would damage other turrets and structures. I868 also proved to be a disastrous year for Osaka Castle as this was the year of the Meiji Restoration. Following the defeat of the Shogunal forces at nearby Toba-Fushimi, the Tokugawa commanders based at the mighty fortress of Osaka decided to make a stand against the forces of Satsuma and Chōshū. During the fighting, much of the castle fell to the torch and the charred scars of this fiery tragedy are still visible on many of the Castle’s stone walls.

In 1931, with civilian donations, Osaka Castle’s main tower was rebuilt for a third time and the castle became home to a regional HQ for Japan’s Imperial Army. This was a bad move, as this made the castle a legitimate military target for US bombers and attack aircraft in the closing months of World War II. Many surviving turrets from the Edo period and other historical structures were bombed or burned to bits. In the 1950s, Osaka Castle and many of its structures were designated Important Cultural Properties and the entire site was designated an Important Historical Property by the central government.

Name: Red Daimyo

Type: Rumble

Driver: Jon Button

Special Abilities: Tank Mode, Acceleration

Description: Mech is equipped with unusual wheelbase is the same as Magnus, which is not surprising, because they are from the same series and are controlled by the brothers. Daimyo is unlike Magnus in speed due to the larger number of accelerators and increased power.

Build notes: The creating this model has become a surprise for me, as I originally wanted to make a futuristic tank, but looked at it and realized that it was an ideal base for another rider.

I'm not sure what this statue means. It depicts, what I presume is a Bodhisattva stepping on an animal and placing his hand on someone's head. I wonder if this is the Taoist god Avalokiteśvara (a Bodhisattva that later became the female Kannon). The reason is Avalokiteśvara is the protector from dangerous animals and evil demons.

Kensō-ji is a Buddhist temple of the Sōtō Sect which was established in the hilly Azabu District in the suburbs of Edo in honor of Nabeshima Tadatsugu, son of Nabeshima Katsushige, after his death from smallpox in 1635. Katsushige was the first lord of Saga Domain in Hizen Province (modern day Kyūshū) and was a loyal general to the shōgun Tokugawa Ieyasu. His son built the temple to serve as the Nabeshima bodaiji, or funerary temple. There is a large graveyard located behind Kensō-ji were the daimyō and direct relatives of the Nabeshima clan are interred. When Katsushige died in 1657, 7 of his most loyal retainers committed suicide in an act called 殉死 (junshi) in order to follow their master in death. Behind Katsushige's large grave, there are 7 stone monuments "attending" him in Buddhism's endless cycle of death and rebirth.

Ritsurin Koen (garden) is one of the most beautiful in the country. It was built around 1650 for the daimyo walking. Many people come here for picnic lunch.

カシワ　かしわ ／柏・槲

daimyo oak

Quercus dentata Thunb.

ブナ科の落葉高木。太い枝を出し、通常は15メートル以下。樹皮は厚く、深い割れ目がある。新枝も太く黄褐色の短い毛を密生する。頂芽は大きく卵状円錐 (えんすい)形で5稜(りょう)がある。葉は倒卵形で基部は耳状となり、長さ15〜30センチメートル、幅6〜18センチメートルで、裏面は灰白色の軟らかい毛を密生する。縁(へり)は波形の深い鋸歯(きょし)がある。枯れ葉は翌春まで枝に残るものが多い。4〜5月、新枝の基部から黄褐色の多数の雄花穂を下垂し、雌花は上部の葉腋(ようえき)に小さな花序をつける。殻斗は3ミリメートルほどの柄があり、褐色、広線形の多数の鱗片(りんぺん)を螺旋(らせん)状につけた椀(わん)形で堅果の半分以上を包む。堅果は卵形ないし卵状球形で長さ1.7〜2.5センチメートル。厚い葉と厚い樹皮があるため風衝地や火山周辺地域、山火事跡地に低木状の純林をよくつくる。また寒暖の差の大きい内陸気候の地域にもよく生える。日本全土、とくに関東地方以北に多く、関西地方では同様の立地にナラガシワが多い。台湾、朝鮮、モンゴルまで分布する。樹皮はタンニンの含有率がブナ科でもっとも高く、染色や革なめしとして用いられた。カシワは炊(かしい)葉の意味で柏餅(かしわもち)に、また神事に用いられ柏手となり残っている。漢字の柏は中国ではヒノキ科の植物をさす。槲・も俗字である。葉形や樹形がヨーロッパのoakに類似するためdaimyo oakの英名が一般的であるが、daimyoの意味には諸説がある。

[萩原信介]

文化史

　今日カシワの種子は食用とされないが、縄文時代にはなんらかの方法で渋を抜き、食されていたのであろう。長野県の有明(ありあけ)山社大門北遺跡からは、種子が出土している。『古事記』に出る「御綱柏(みつながしわ)」の正体については、カクレミノ、フユイチゴ、オオタニワタリなどとする諸説があり、さだかではない。またカシワの名は、「炊(かし)く葉」から由来したとする説が有力で、古くは蒸し焼きに使われた葉の総称であったと思われる。現在でも柏餅にサルトリイバラの葉を用いる所がある。

[湯浅浩史]

OAK

any of about 450 species of ornamental and timber trees and shrubs constituting the genus Quercus in the beech family (Fagaceae), distributed throughout the North Temperate Zone and at high altitudes in the tropics.

Many plants commonly called “oak” are not Quercus species—e.g., African oak, Australian oak, bull oak, Jerusalem oak, poison oak, river oak, she-oak, silky oak, tanbark oak, Tasmanian oak, and tulip oak.

Quercus species are characterized by alternate, simple, deciduous or evergreen leaves with lobed, toothed, or entire margins. The male flowers are borne in pendent yellow catkins, appearing with or after the leaves. Female flowers occur on the same tree, singly or in two- to many-flowered spikes; each flower has a husk of overlapping scales that enlarges to hold the fruit, or acorn, which matures in one to two seasons.

Oaks can be separated into three groups, sometimes considered subgenera: white oaks (Leucobalanus) and red or black oaks (Erythrobalanus) have the scales of the acorn cups spirally arranged; in the third group (Cyclobalanus) the scales are fused into concentric rings. White oaks have smooth, non-bristle-tipped leaves, occasionally with glandular margins. Their acorns mature in one season, have sweet-tasting seeds, and germinate within a few days after their fall. Red or black oaks have bristle-tipped leaves, hairy-lined acorn shells, and bitter fruits, which mature at the end of the second growing season.

In North America several oaks are of ornamental landscape value, including pin oak (q.v.; Q. palustris) and northern red oak (Q. rubra). White oak (q.v.; Q. alba) and bur oak (q.v.; Q. macrocarpa) form picturesque oak groves locally in the Midwest. Many oaks native to the Mediterranean area have economic value: galls produced on the twigs of the Aleppo oak (Q. infectoria) are a source of Aleppo tannin, used in ink manufacture; commercial cork is obtained from the bark of the cork oak (Q. suber), and the tannin-rich kermes oak (Q. coccifera) is the host of the kermes insect, once harvested for a dye contained in its body fluids.

Two eastern Asian oaks also are economically valuable: the Mongolian oak (Q. mongolica) provides useful timber, and the Oriental oak (Q. variabilis) is the source of a black dye as well as a popular ornamental. Other cultivated ornamentals are the Armenian, or pontic, oak (Q. pontica), chestnut-leaved oak (Q. castaneaefolia), golden oak (Q. alnifolia), Holm, or holly, oak (Q. ilex), Italian oak (Q. frainetto), Lebanon oak (Q. libani), Macedonian oak (Q. trojana), and Portuguese oak (Q. lusitanica). Popular Asian ornamentals include the blue Japanese oak (Q. glauca), daimyo oak (Q. dentata), Japanese evergreen oak (Q. acuta), and sawtooth oak (Q. acutissima). The English oak, a timber tree native to Eurasia and northern Africa, is cultivated in other areas of the world as an ornamental.

Acorns provide food for small game animals and are used to fatten swine and poultry. Red- and white-oak lumber is used in construction, flooring, furniture, millwork, cooperage, and the production of crossties, structural timbers, and mine props.

Oaks can be propagated easily from acorns and grow well in rich, moderately moist soil or dry, sandy soil. Many grow again from stump sprouts. They are hardy and long-lived but are not shade-tolerant and may be injured by leaf-eating organisms or oak wilt fungus.

The taxonomy of the genus Quercus is confusing because of the many natural hybrids.

Osaka Castle has a long and storied history. It all began in 1496 when the priest Rennyo built a small temple called the Ishiyama Gobo on the grounds of the present-day castle. In 1533, the Hongan-ji temple moved from Yamashina in Kyoto to Osaka and made the Osaka location its head temple. As Japan plunged deeper into the chaos of civil war, the Ishiyama Hongan-ji grew in spiritual, political, economic and military power, challenging the rule of daimyo and led many popular military revolts. This Buddhist temple had become a center of military might that stood in Oda Nobuanga’s path of unifying Japan and in 1570, full-scale war broke out between him and the warrior monks. After 10 long years of siege and fighting, the temple finally surrendered to the Oda, and Nobunaga ordered that the temple and its remaining fortifications be burnt to the ground in 1580. Three years later, with Nobunaga dead and Hideyoshi starting to consolidate his power, he chose Osaka as his base and began building a castle on the ruins of the Ishiyama Hongan-ji compound. The main keep was completed in 1585 and was considered the largest, most splendid and impregnable fortress of its day. In 1599, a year after the death of Hideyoshi, his son and heir, Hideyori, along with his mother Yodo, permanently moved into Osaka Castle from Fushimi Castle in Kyoto.

By 1614, it was clear that the Tokugawa were spoiling for a fight with the Toyotomi as they wanted to eliminate any threat that Hideyori could mount from this massive castle. Therefore, in the winter of that year, Ieyasu and his son, Hidetada (now Shogun) launched the winter siege of Osaka. It was a fairly inconclusive affair, but as one of the terms of peace and as a goodwill gesture towards the Tokugawa, Hideyori agreed to fill in the outer moat. However, the Tokugawa forces started filling in the inner moat, severely weakening the castle’s defenses. It was only a matter of time before fighting broke out again under these conditions, and in the summer of 1615, the Tokugawa coalition once again laid siege to the castle. After some heavy and dramatic fighting in which western artillery was used against the castle, Hideyori and Yodo committed suicide when it became clear that all was lost and the castle’s main keep erupted in flames and was completely destroyed. After two major sieges and the final fire, the castle grounds were a heap of ruins.

However, Osaka was an important economic and political center and in 1620, the Tokugawa Shogunate decided to rebuild the castle. In 1626, a new white-colored main keep was built, symbolizing a new age for the castle. In the Toyotomi period, the color of the keep had been black. By 1629 the remaining structures were completed. Bad luck continued to dog the castle and in 1665 lightning struck the main keep and it was destroyed. Through the years, lightning would damage other turrets and structures. I868 also proved to be a disastrous year for Osaka Castle as this was the year of the Meiji Restoration. Following the defeat of the Shogunal forces at nearby Toba-Fushimi, the Tokugawa commanders based at the mighty fortress of Osaka decided to make a stand against the forces of Satsuma and Chōshū. During the fighting, much of the castle fell to the torch and the charred scars of this fiery tragedy are still visible on many of the Castle’s stone walls.

In 1931, with civilian donations, Osaka Castle’s main tower was rebuilt for a third time and the castle became home to a regional HQ for Japan’s Imperial Army. This was a bad move, as this made the castle a legitimate military target for US bombers and attack aircraft in the closing months of World War II. Many surviving turrets from the Edo period and other historical structures were bombed or burned to bits. In the 1950s, Osaka Castle and many of its structures were designated Important Cultural Properties and the entire site was designated an Important Historical Property by the central government.

Daimyo - Princes Du Soleil Levant , Francoise Faconnet, 1991 - Jacquard

- earth tones | multi

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