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A view from top of Uto-Yagura.
A tiled long roof in a little left of the middle of this photo is the entrance and corridor belong to this building, whereas south "Ote-Mon" gate is seen a little right of the middle. In the back of these you can see the Kumamoto City. The big and beautiful city.
邪展 2006年9月18～24日 福岡・エンジョイスペース大名
Yokoshima-exhibition
Sept.18-24
2006
enjoy-space Daimyo,Fukuoka city,Japan
In late October I took a random trip to Saga Castle in Saga City (Saga Prefecture, Kyuushuu.) They happened to be having a reenactment event that day and dozens and dozens of people in elaborate costumes were there.
In late October I took a random trip to Saga Castle in Saga City (Saga Prefecture, Kyuushuu.) They happened to be having a reenactment event that day and dozens and dozens of people in elaborate costumes were there.
You have no idea how badly I wanted this hat, but the price was too high even for such a great slogan.
1)JAPAN: THE ISLANDS
More than two million years ago the Asian continental landmass drifted eastward and collided with the underlying substrate, buckling and thrusting it upward to form the mountainous terrain of Japan. At first, land bridges connected Japan to the continent- north through the Kurils and Sakhalin, west through Korea, and south through the Ryukus and Formosa. With the melting of the great glaciers and a rise in sea level, these land bridges submerged. The same rise in sea level separated Japan into its four major islands: Hokkaido in the north; Honshu, the central and largest island; and the southern islands of Shikoku and Kyushu.
2)THE JOMON (4500-250 BC)
While evidence exists that Paleolithic man crossed the land bridges to roam Japan before the close of the glacial periods, little is known of his life. A few stone knives, hand axes and scrapers have been recovered to prove he was there. Much more is known of the succeeding culture- the Jomon.
These neolithic people lived in semi-subterranean houses carved two to four feet into the soil. The posts around the edges of these pit dwellings presumably supported their roofs. Piles of seashells surrounding these homes and bone harpoons and fish hooks attested to a dependency on the sea. Stone arrowheads indicate that these people also were hunters. Having no knowledge of agriculture, the Jomon were gatherers who stored the fruits of their labor in pottery jars. Clay figures called "dogu" are believed to represent their deities.
3)THE YAYOI (250BC-552AD)
The straits of Korea form one of the closest links between Japan and the Asian mainland. Across this channel migrated the nebulous origins that superseded or altered the Jomon culture. Known as Yayoi, these people brought to Japan many continental cultural elements. The people farmed the land. Contact with Korea had acquainted them with Chinese techniques of rice cultivation, which they then adapted to Japan. Bronze implements, first imported and then modeled after Chinese and Korean patterns, were also introduced. Curious bronze bells, the "dotaku", possibly of religious significance and similar in configuration but not in size and decoration to Korean types, have been found, The pottery similarly shows continental influence. Unlike the Jomon jars, the Yayoi pottery was formed on a potter's wheel. The most impressive and important remains of the Yayoi, however, are their distinctive clay figures, called "haniwa".
4)THE ASUKU PERIOD (552-710 AD)
By the 7th century AD, a militant clan from the island of Kyushu had migrated to Yamato province in the central island of Honshu to assert its rule over the local clans. To secure permanent dominance, this clan developed over the years a series of legends tracing its ancestry to the gods. At first orally transmitted, these legends were compiled in written form in the "Kojiki" (712 AD) and the "Nihon Shoki"(720 AD). The deities represented form the basis of Shinto, the earliest religion of Japan. According to legend, these ancestral deities presentged three valuable objects to the Imperial line: a sword, a carved jewel and a mirror. These became and remain the symbols of the Imperial Family.
The Asuku period saw an increase in commerce with the mainland. Significantly, itinerant Chinese monks planted the seeds of Buddhism in Japan. With it came a masked ceremonial pantomime with musical accompaniment, the "gigaku", that derived from a similar dramatic form in the Chinese court and in mainland monasteries.
5)THE NARA AND HEIAN PERIODS(710-1184 AD)
Buddhism was brought to Japan during the Asuku period and promoted under the auspices of the Soga clan with the hope that its influence would centralize power. Attempts also were made to restructure land ownership on the Chinese system, but these failed. Instead of many small estates directly responsible to the Imperial Court, the Buddhist monasteries merely supplanted the independent provincial landlords as the mainstay of power. In the process, however, a government bureaucracy was born.
The focus needed for the orderly expansion of mainland culture was provided in 710 AD, when a permanent capital, modeled on the Tang period Chinese capital at Ch'ang-an, was established at Nara. To escape the influence of the numerous nearby monasteries, the capital was moved to Nagoya in 785 AD and to Heian-kyo (Kyoto) ten years later. The move signified an important change in the political power structure. Subsequent significant changes were accompanied by similar relocations that gave names to successive periods in Japanese history.
During the Nara and Heian periods the Imperial Family was dominated by the Fujiwara clan, who in effect ruled the country as regents. Eventually their position solidified into the office of "kampaka". The emperor remained the nominal but impotent head of the country, while the "kampaka" made the decisions of state and saw to their execution. This dualistic form of government continued with some variations until modern times.
6)THE KAMAKURA PERIOD (1185-1333 AD)
For many years the mountainous terrain of Japan defied the establishment of centralized authority. In spite of the emperor's claim to ownership of all land, strong militaristic units developed in isolated enclaves. At the same time, the Imperial administration operating from the Buddhist temples required guards, and these centers later evolved into permanent garrisons. Under the leadership of the Minamoto and Taira clans, these military units developed into a warrior class- the "samurai".
By the twelfth century AD, the waning influence of the Kyoto court officials caused them to enlist the aid of the Minamoto clan to maintain power in the provinces. In 1156 war broke out between the Taira and Minamoto clans. Although initially successful, by 1185 AD the Taira clan had been crushed by forces under Minamoto Yoritomo, first "Seii tai shogun" (Barbarian Suppressing Commander), of for short, "shogun".
To prevent the demoralization of his camp by the effete Kyoto court life, Yoritomo moved his headquarters to Kamakura. Here he organized a new administrative system, the "bakufu". This system continued to administer the affairs of the country under the auspices of the related Hojo clan after Yoritomo's death. Meanwhile, the "samurai", influenced by the appearance of Zen-Buddhism, developed into a fierce and stoic warrior class under a code of honor, later called "bushido". Nevertheless, only the intervention of typhoons, the "kamikaze", save Japan from conquest at the hands of Kublai Khan and his Mongols in 1274 AD and again in 1281.
7)THE MUROMACHI PERIOD (1334-1507 AD)
The military government of the "bakufu" had no direct means to levy taxes. It maintained loyalty by subdividing the confiscated estates of its domestic enemies among the victorious "samurai". Repelling the Mongol hordes bankrupted the "bakufu". Exploiting this weakness, the emperor briefly reestablished his own authority, only to see a rival supported by the Ashikaga clan enthroned as emperor. During 50 years of civil war, the contesting factions struggled for supremacy, but succeeded only in weakening centralized authority.
Into the void emerged a new power, the "daimyo", or "great names". While the "samurai" power structure was based on the premise of plunder, the "daimyo's" power rested on his land and the rice crop it produced. With a portion of the crop, the "daimyo" paid his "samurai" retainers. They in turn insured his taxation of the peasants who worked his property.
In this decentralized atmosphere, the entertainment of the old Imperial Court yielded to simpler art forms within the means and taste of the "daimyo" and "samurai". Hence originated unostentatious "no" plays, with their dramatic masks and their themes drawn from the tales of the heroic age. Meanwhile, the Zen-Buddhism that solidified the "samurai" class was adapted to another decentralized environment, the monasteries. Here fascinatingly intricate gardens were prepared to foster meditation. Within this setting, tea drinking, which Chinese monks had introduced to Japan, evolved into a distinctive Japanese ritual.
8)THE MOMOYAMA PERIOD (1668-1616 AD)
The islands of "Zipangu" and their reputed wealth in gold and pearls had been known to Europe through the writings of Marco Polo. Yet not until 1543 did a Portuguese ship venture to the shores of Japan. These "namban", or "barbarians from the south", brought with them firearms, tobacco, the Arabian stallion, and Christianity.
With the Portuguese came the Jesuits. In spite of the jealousy of Buddhist monks, these missionaries were welcomed for their technical knowledge and soon became influential, particularly in the external trade of Japan. The increased militancy between Catholic and Protestant factions in Europe, coupled with the fear of foreign domination, soon caused Japanese leaders to reconsider their permissive attitude and repressive action followed. The fears of the government seemed justified in 1637 when Christians led southern peasants in open rebellion.
With the crushing of the Christians at Shimabara in 1638, the Portuguese were expelled. Earlier edicts prohibited native Japanese from leaving or re-entering their homeland under pain of death. For their cooperation against the Portuguese, the Dutch were granted a limited trade concession at Deshima, in Nagasaki Harbor, but for all practical purposes Japan was closed to the west.
In spite of the rejection of Western ideas, the European technological impact, particularly in the form of firearms, proved decisive in ending the bloody civil wars and re-establishing the "shogun" as the central political authority, first under the Toyotomi, and afterwards under the allied Tokugawa clan.
9)YEDO PERIOD(1616-1867 AD)
For 250 years the Tokugawa "shoguns" strictly enforced an isolated and socially stratified Japan from their capital at Yedo (Tokyo). The peace that accompanied isolation brought a general rise in the standard of living for all classes except the peasants. In spite of restrictions on social mobility and commerce, guildlike organizations began to specialize in the manufacture of certain products; specialization in manufacture led to specialization in marketing. A new middle class evolved based on tangible goods and services rather than land. The reinstatement of a monetary system hastened the doom of the rice economy. Shops prospered in larger cities, especially Yedo, where the families of the "daimyo" were required to reside as perpetual hostages to ensure the "daimyo's" fealty during his annual inspection of his land holdings. Urbanization brought new problems, not the least of which were the fires which periodically ravaged the densely crowded shop areas despite the best efforts of the fire brigades. Throughout the period the real but unacknowledged status of the new middle class continued to rise as the "daimyo" and his "samurai" became increasingly dependent on the luxuries of urban living. The birth and popularization of the "kabuki" theater reflected the transition. Hence the system was already tottering when, in the 1850s, Russia and the United States pressured the "shogun" for a reopening of Japanese ports.
10)THE MEIJI RESTORATION:BIRTH OF MODERN JAPAN (1868-1970 AD)
The impotence of the "shogun" to prevent the foreign powers from reopening Japan spelled his doom. In reaction to these incursions, the Choshu clan successfully revolted against the Tokugawa regime and in 1868 restored the Emperor Meiji to power. In the process the Imperial Court relocated from Kyoto to Yedo, renamed Tokyo. The "daimyo" surrendered their holdings to the emperor, whose power was secured with the crushing of the old "samurai" in the Satsuma Rebellion.
During the 44 years that Emperor Meiji reigned, Japan was transformed from an agrarian to a modern industrial society. The entire national structure was revamped, politically, economically and socially. A constitution was adopted in 1889 establishing a parliament, the Diet, but the real power rested with the ministers of state surrounding the emperor. A capitalistic economy evolved to produce great industrial, commercial and financial families. The educational system was altered, and in the process the famous Tokyo University was born. The remodeled military establishment, successful against the Chinese in 1885 and the Russians in 1905, gained a foothold and eventually dominated the councils of government. This proved unfortunate.
In 1931 Japan seized Manchuria and provoked China into war. The European War permitted Japan next to occupy Southeast Asia, but there Japan collided with the interests of England and the United States. Four years of struggle culminated in Japan's defeat. In postwar reconstruction democratic reforms were instituted, but the Imperial line was maintained. From the ashes of the fire raids an new industrial complex took form. Within 25 years of the nuclear devastation of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan had emerged to become the world's third largest economic power.
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Considerable splendor attends the stopover of a daimyo at his temporary headquarters in Seki. Down the Emperor's Road with Hiroshige - Reiko Chiba (Ed) (1965). Charles E. Tuttle Co., Rutland, Vermont & Tokyo, Japan. ISBN 0-8048-0143-6
Daimyo oak (Quercus dentata), Beech family (Fagaceae).
Los Angeles County Arboretum, Arcadia, California.
Hakone Sekisho 箱根関所 was one of the 53 checkpoints under the Tokugawa shogunate during the Edo period. Built in the 17th century, its most important function was to control the movement of women out of Edo, as the wives of daimyos were kept in Edo as hostages to keep the daimyos well behaved. It was excavated and reconstructed in the first decade of the 21st century.
Shukkeien Daimyo (feudal lord) of Hiroshima, Asano Nagaakira, begun the construction of Shukkeien in 1620. Nagaakira comissioned the famous master of the tea ceremony, Ueda Soko to build this garden, modeled on Xihu in Hangzhou China.
(前田利長, Maeda Toshinaga, February 15, 1562 - June 27, 1614) was a Japanese daimyo who was the second head of the Kaga Domain.
Toshinaga built and resided in Kanazawa Castle
The fibreglass sculpture of a Komainu by Nakamura Hiromine. It is the guardian of the Daimyo Garden, welcomes children and enjoys their climbing all over it.
Oyaki from Tokachi Daimyo for desserts, filled with anko, shiro-an (white bean paste), and chestnut paste.
In late October I took a random trip to Saga Castle in Saga City (Saga Prefecture, Kyuushuu.) They happened to be having a reenactment event that day and dozens and dozens of people in elaborate costumes were there.