is a group of islands in
Miyagi Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku region of Honshu. Miyagi Prefecture has a population of 2,305,596 (1 June 2019) and has a geographic area of . Miyagi Prefecture borders Iwate Prefecture to the north, Akita Prefecture to the nort ...
,
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
. There are some 260 tiny islands (''shima'') covered in pines (''matsu'') – hence the name – and it is considered to be one of the
Three Views of Japan
The is the canonical list of Japan's three most celebrated scenic sights, attributed to 1643 and scholar Hayashi Gahō. In 1915, modeled on the old Three Views of Japan, Jitsugyo no Nihon Sha (株式会社実業之日本社) held a national elect ...
.
Nearby cultural properties include
Zuigan-ji
is a Rinzai Zen Buddhist temple in located in the town of Matsushima, Miyagi Prefecture, Japan. Belonging to the Myōshin-ji-branch of Rinzai Zen, it was founded in 828 during the Heian period by Jikaku Daishi.
History
The temple was found ...
,
Entsū-in,
Kanrantei
is the only building to survive from a mansion complex of the Date clan in Matsushima, Miyagi Prefecture, Japan. It is said to have originated as a teahouse in Toyotomi Hideyoshi's Fushimi Castle, to have been moved to Edo by Date Masamune, and fi ...
, and the
Satohama shell mound
The is an archaeological site consisting of a shell midden and the remains of an adjacent Jōmon period settlement located in what is now the city of Higashimatsushima, Miyagi Prefecture in the Tōhoku region of northern Japan. It has been prot ...
.
Views
A well-known
haiku
is a type of short form poetry originally from Japan. Traditional Japanese haiku consist of three phrases that contain a ''kireji'', or "cutting word", 17 '' on'' (phonetic units similar to syllables) in a 5, 7, 5 pattern, and a ''kigo'', or se ...
describes the islands as so striking that the poet is at a loss for words:
While often attributed to
Matsuo Bashō
born then was the most famous poet of the Edo period in Japan. During his lifetime, Bashō was recognized for his works in the collaborative '' haikai no renga'' form; today, after centuries of commentary, he is recognized as the greatest ma ...
, the earliest known publication is in the ''Matsushima Zushi'' (松島図誌), published in 1820 over a century after Bashō's death, which attributes it to the ''
kyōka
''Kyōka'' (, "wild" or "mad poetry") is a popular, parodic subgenre of the tanka form of Japanese poetry with a metre of 5-7-5-7-7. The form flourished during the Edo period (17th–18th centuries) and reached its zenith during the Tenmei era ...
'' poet Tawara-bō (田原坊). While Bashō did visit Matsushima in ''
Oku no Hosomichi
''Oku no Hosomichi'' (, originally ), translated as ''The Narrow Road to the Deep North'' and ''The Narrow Road to the Interior'', is a major work of ''haibun'' by the Japanese poet Matsuo Bashō, considered one of the major texts of Japanese l ...
'', its only haiku about Matsushima was written by his travel comparison
Kawai Sora
''Oku no Hosomichi'' (, originally ), translated as ''The Narrow Road to the Deep North'' and ''The Narrow Road to the Interior'', is a major work of ''haibun'' by the Japanese poet Matsuo Bashō, considered one of the major texts of Japanese ...
.
Four views of Matsushima
There are four well-known spots to view the Matsushima, known as the , , , and .
Image:matsushima otakamori08Dec07.jpg, Magnificent View: The view from Otakamori
Image:matsushima tomiyama10Mar07.jpg, Beautiful View: The view from Toyama
Image:matsushima ogidani23Nov07.jpg, Enchanting View: The view from Ogidani
Image:matsushima tamonsan11Feb07.jpg, Grand View: The view from Tamonsan
Cruise
Tourists can view the islands from up close on cruise boats.
Image:Nioujima.jpg, Niōjima
Image:Senganjima.jpg, Senganjima: Masamune Date
was a regional ruler of Japan's Azuchi–Momoyama period through early Edo period. Heir to a long line of powerful ''daimyō'' in the Tōhoku region, he went on to found the modern-day city of Sendai. An outstanding tactician, he was made all ...
's favorite island
Image:Komonejima.jpg, Komonejima
Image:Matsushima famous island.jpg, Kanejima
Image:Futagojima.jpg, Futagojima
Image:Misagojima.jpg, Misagojima
Image:Kaerujima.jpg, Kaerujima
Image:Meganejima.jpg, Takashima, also known as Meganejima
Transportation
The town is only a short distance (thirty minutes, about 14 km) from prefectural capital
Sendai
is the capital Cities of Japan, city of Miyagi Prefecture, the largest city in the Tōhoku region. , the city had a population of 1,091,407 in 525,828 households, and is one of Japan's 20 Cities designated by government ordinance of Japan, desig ...
and is easily accessible by
train
In rail transport, a train (from Old French , from Latin , "to pull, to draw") is a series of connected vehicles that run along a railway track and Passenger train, transport people or Rail freight transport, freight. Trains are typically pul ...
.
Matsushima-Kaigan Station
is a railway station in the town of Matsushima, Miyagi Prefecture, Japan, operated by East Japan Railway Company (JR East).
Lines
Matsushima-Kaigan Station is served by the Senseki Line. It is located 23.2 rail kilometers from the terminus of t ...
is near the attractions such as
Zuiganji and the waterfront.
Matsushima Station
is a railway station in the town of Matsushima, Miyagi, Japan, operated by East Japan Railway Company (JR East). This station is about 1 km from Takagimachi Station and about 2 km away from Matsushima-Kaigan Station on the Senseki ...
, on a
separate line is on the opposite side of the town.
2011 Tōhoku earthquake
Despite the proximity of Matsushima to the
2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami
The occurred at 14:46 JST (05:46 UTC) on 11 March. The magnitude 9.0–9.1 (M) undersea megathrust earthquake had an epicenter in the Pacific Ocean, east of the Oshika Peninsula of the Tōhoku region, and lasted approximately six minutes ...
, the area was protected by the islands and suffered relatively little damage. The initial tsunami was 3.2 metres (10.5 feet) with the second 3.8 metres (12.5 feet). Electricity was restored by March 18, water fully restored by April 16th and the Senseki Train Line between Takagimachi Station and Sendai by May 28. Nevertheless, three people were confirmed killed in Matsushima (including by aftershocks) with 18 killed while out of town.
Activities
Around the island travelers can go on a cruise and view the islands up close an around the Matsushima shore travelers can rent bikes.
See also
*
References
External links
Matsushima Town official website
{{Coord, 38, 22, N, 141, 05, E, type:isle_region:JP, display=title
9900
Tourist attractions in Miyagi Prefecture
Special Places of Scenic Beauty
Archipelagoes of Japan
Japanese archipelago
Islands of Miyagi Prefecture
Archipelagoes of the Pacific Ocean