DURING THE EDO PERIOD (1603-1886) MANY VASSAL LORDS BUILT LARGE GARDENS WITHIN WHICH TO STROLL AROUND, BOTH IN THEIR HOME FIEFS, AS WELL AS IN THE RULING TOKUGAWA CLAN'S MAIN SETTLEMENT, EDO. IN 1886 THE TOKUGAWA SHOGUNATE WAS OVERTHROWN, EDO WAS RENAMED TOKYO, DEVELOPMENT AND WAR CAME AND MOST OF THOSE GARDENS HAVE DISAPPEARED: AT LEAST TWO REMAIN.
RIKUGI-EN (1695, 18 ACRES) IS OF PARTICULAR INTEREST BECAUSE THE DESIGNERS OF THE SEATTLE JAPANESE GARDEN SAY IT INFLUENCED THEIR DESIGN FOR OURS.
INSIDE THE FORMAT GATE AT THE ENTRY, AN INFORMAL GATE LEADS TO ...
AN OPEN VIEW OF THE "OCEAN AND MOUNTAIN" CENTER OF THE GARDEN. THEY ARE OFTEN CREATED BY DEEPENING THE ONE AND RAISING THE OTHER.
FROM THE TOP OF THE MOUNTAIN IT WOULD BE NICE TO HAVE A VIEW OF, SAY, MT. FUJI, HOWEVER AS HIGH RISE BUILDINGS HAVE BLOCKED THAT POSSIBILITY, TREES ARE OFTEN ALLOWED TO GROW IN ORDER TO BLOCK VIEW OF THE BUILDINGS.
INLETS TO THE POND ARE OFTEN CREATED WITH VERY NATURALISTIC LOOKING GROUPS OF STONES AND PLANTS, BUT IT TAKES ARE LOT OF MAINTENANCE TO MAINTAIN THAT LOOK.
MATERIALS FOR BRIDGES ARE VARIED TO GIVE DIFFERENT APPEARANCES...
.... AND EXPERIENCES.
STONE LANTERNS (AN OIL LAMP OR CANDLE CAN BE PLACED INSIDE) ARE THE MOST FREQUENTLY USED DECORATIVE ITEM. THEY COME IN MANY SHAPES AND...
...SIZES. (IS BIGGER BETTER?)
THE OTHER GARDEN IS...
KORAKU-EN, WHICH SHARES ITS NAME WITH ANOTHER WELL KNOWN GARDEN IN OKAYAMA CITY, SO TOKYO'S IS USUALLY CALLED KOISHIKAWA-KORAKUEN, AFTER THE NEIGHBORHOOD IN WHICH IT IS LOCATED. NOT ONLY THE VASSAL LORDS, BUT OF COURSE THE TOKUGAWA' S ALSO HAD GARDENS BUILT. THIS WAS STARTED VERY EARLY IN THE EDO ERA (1702) BY THE MITO BRANCH OF THE CLAN. COUILD THIS HAVE HAD SOMETHING TO DO WITH ITS SIZE AND SURVIVAL? EVEN IN A DIMINISHED STATE, AT 63 ACRES IN DOWNTOWN TOKYO, DON'T YA THINK SOME DEVELOPERS HAVE DROOLED OVER IT?
HERE TOO TREES BLOCK VIEWS OF TOKYO'S RISING SKYLINE, BUT...
... IN THE INNER GARDEN IT SEEMS TREES ARE PURPOSEFULLY PRUNED TO "CAPTURE A VIEW" OF THE TOKYO DOME BASEBALL STADIUM.
A BIT UNUSUAL IS THE WIDE SPREAD USE OF "NOBEDAN" STONE WALKWAYS, PROVIDING...
...A STUDY IN ROCK ARRANGEMENTS, COLORS, ...
...AND TEXTURES.
THE GARDEN DESIGN WAS INFLUENCE BY A CHINESE SCHOLAR AND IS SEEN IN ITS BRIDGES. THIS ARCHED BRIDGE OF STONE WITH "FULL MOON" DESIGN, AS WELL AS ...
...A BRIGHT RED-ORANGE ARCHED ONE ARE TYPICAL OF CHINESE BRIDGE DESIGNS.
AND TO THE KNOWING EYE, THIS CAUSEWAY WITH A SMALL ARCHED BRIDGE WOULD IMMEDIATELY BRING HANGZHOU'S "WEST LAKE" GARDEN TO MIND.
AND AS THE CAT SAYS, "WHERE TO NEXT?"
OKAYAMA CITY, HOME OF THE OTHER KORAKU-EN GARDEN:
STARTED IN 1867, THE LORD OF BIZEN (OKAYAMA) HAD A CANAL DUG ALONG THE LEFT BANK OF THE ASAHI RIVER TO CREAT A 33 ACRE SITE FEATURING WATER FROM THE RIVER.
A TERRIFIC GUIDE EXPLAINED HOW THE LORD VISITED THE GARDEN FROM HIS CASTLE ON THE OPPOSITE SHORE BY BOAT, ...
...ARRIVING AT THIS RECENTLY DISCOVERED LANDING. THE STEPS UP LED TO A PATH ALONG WHICH ...
... A PARTICULARLY DESIRABLE ROCK WAS PLACED. IT HAD TO BE BROKEN INTO MANY PIECES (29? 90? SOURCES DIFFER) AND REASSEMBLED TO BE RELOCATED HERE.
ON THE PATH GOES, CROSSING A STREAM OVER A ZIG-ZAG BRIDGE, LEADING TO ENYO-TEI, THE DOMINATE STRUCTURE IN THE GARDEN.
THE MAIN ROOM (BEHIND THE WOODEN SHUTTERS) LOOKS OUT...
...ON TO THE CENTRAL AREA OF THE GARDEN. UNUSUAL FOR ITS EXPANSIVE SECTIONS OF LOW PLANT COVER, WHICH EXTENDS THE VIEW TO THE FAR END, EMPHASIZING THE SIZE OF THE GARDEN.
WITH ALL THE WATERWAYS, STEPPING STONES ARE COMMON ...
...AS ARE TURTLES.
IT HAS A UNIQUE STRUCTURE WHICH...
...HAS COOL RIVER WATER CHANNELED THOUGH IT FOR SUMMER RELAXATION
AFTER CROSSING THE BROAD FLAT AREA, A LOW RISE, WITH A DRY STONE WATERFALL DOWN ONE SIDE, ...
...IS CLIMBED ALONG A BAMBOO FENCE AND HEDGE, WHICH BLOCKS ONES VIEW UNTIL THE CREST IS REACHED.
IT TAKES THREE FRAMES TO SHOW THE SCENE.
NOTE THE WET PADDY RICE FIELDS, LOTUS ROOT BEDS, AND BEYOND, TEA PLANTS.
THE BACK ROUTE DESCENDS ALONG STONES,
...UNTIL IT REACHES A STREAM CROSSED BY AN 8-PLANK BRIDGE, LEADING TO...
...IRIS BEDS. A COMMON ELEMENT IN LARGER STROLL GARDENS.
.
THIS TWO STONE BRIDGE IS A BIT MORE CHALLENGING...WHAT WOULD ADA SAY?... BUT A BOWL OF TEA IN THE HUT BEYOND IS WORTH IT.
A POND HAS ANOTHER COMMON ELEMENT IN IT: TURTLE ISLAND. HMMM, WHICH END IS THE HEAD AND WHICH IS THE TAIL?
NEXT IS SENGAN-EN, WHICH IS ON JAPAN'S SOUTHERN MOST MAIN ISLAND OF KYUSHU (THE OKINAWAN ISLANDS ARE FURTHER SOUTH) IN KAGOSHIMA PREFECTURE. IN THE EDO ERA IT WAS CALLED SATSUMA, WHICH WAS AN OUTLIER IN MORE THAN GEOGRAPHY: SEE SECTION ABOVE ON KAGOSHIMA.
ITS STROLL GARDEN, SENGAN-EN ON THE RIGHT ABOVE, DATES FROM 1658. ON THE LEFT ARE REMAINS FROM AND MUSEUMS TO SOME OF THE EARLIEST INDUSTRIAL DEVELOPMENTS IN JAPAN.
THE MAIN GATE TO THE ESTATE IS NOW UNUSED AND FORLORN, WITH ONLY THE OCCASIONAL CURIOUS VISITOR STEPPING OUT IT TO SEE THE GATE, WHICH IN ITS DAY, ONLY THE LORD AND HIS ELDEST SON COULD PASS THROUGH.
FURTHER ON IS THE "TIN GATE", NAMED FOR ITS PIONEERING USE OF TIN SHINGLES. FROM IT THE PATH LEADS TO THE GARDEN AND...
...THIS USUALLY LARGE STONE LANTERN.
THE DESCENT DOWN STEPS ALONG A STREAM LINED WITH LARGE AND WILD STONES, OPENS ONTO...
...AN UNUSUALLY LARGE GRAVEL AREA...DID THEY RACE HORSES?...AND...
... ... MORE LARGE STONES, AND LANTERNS.
A HIGH HEDGE BLOCKS OFF THE HIGHWAY AND RAILROAD WHICH RUN ALONG THE OCEAN, BUT I SUSPECT IN THE 17TH CENTURY THE GARDEN WAS MORE OPEN TO THE SEA.
FARTHER INTO THE GARDEN, THE SCALE OF STONES, WALKWAYS AND ....
...BUILDINGS IS MORE TYPICAL.
A LATER ADDITION, ON A BENCH CUT INTO THE HILLSIDE, IS A "MEANDERING WATER" GARDEN, WHERE GUESTS WOULD SIT AND WRITE POETRY...MAYBE ON COOL SUMMER EVENINGS? A HEIAN ERA PAST TIME WHICH ORIGINATED IN CHINA IN 363 C.E.
THIS IS A "BORROWED VIEW" OF AN ANNUAL RE-ENACTMENT OF SUCH AN EVENT.
ITS NOT UNUSUAL TO SEE SHINTO SHRINES IN GARDENS, OFTEN TO THE SPIRITS OF THE EARTH, STONE, TREES DISTURBED BY THE GARDEN'S CREATION AND SUBSEQUENT VISITORS, BUT....
... IT IS NOT COMMON TO SEE A SHRINE DEDICATED TO CATS.
EVENTUALLY THE MEANDERING PATH LEADS THROUGH A SMALL POND TO....
...THE MAIN BUILDING, WHERE....
... WITHIN IT ARE MANY SMALLER COURTYARD GARDENS,...
... OR JUST OUTSIDE IT, "POCKET" GARDEN ELEMENTS.
THE LORD'S PRIVATE STUDY, WITH ITS SLIDING DOORS REMOVED, LOOKS OUT OVER THE LARGE GARDEN, AND OVER THE HIGH HEDGE, TO (ARE WE SURPRISED?)...
... A "BORROWED VIEW" OF THE VOLCANO, SAKURA-JIMA.
THANKS TO AN ON-LINE IMAGE SEARCH, THIS IS A CLEAR DAY VIEW!
THANKS TO AN ON-LINE IMAGE SEARCH, THIS IS A CLEAR DAY VIEW!
