is a Japanese landscape garden and nationally designated Place of Scenic Beauty in the city of Hirakawa,

Aomori Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan in the Tōhoku region. The prefecture's capital, largest city, and namesake is the city of Aomori. Aomori is the northernmost prefecture on Japan's main island, Honshu, and is bordered by the Pacific Ocean to the east, ...

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 ...

Overview

The garden was laid out between 1902 and 1911 by the 24th generation head of the Seitō family, Seitō Morihide, and covers an area of . In the ''Oishi Bugaku Ryu'' style of Japanese gardens, it incorporates a large pond, with standing and

stepping stones Stepping stones or stepstones are sets of stones arranged to form an improvised causeway that allows a pedestrian to cross a natural watercourse such as a river; or a water feature in a garden where water is allowed to flow between stone steps. U ...

, and stone bridges reminiscent of

Momoyama period Momoyama may refer to: History *Azuchi–Momoyama period, the final phase of the Sengoku period in Japanese history 1568–1600 People * Ion Momoyama, Japanese singer and voice actor * Momoyama Kenichi (1909–1991), Korean prince and cavalry offi ...

garden layouts. The gardens are attached to the , the '' Giyōfū'' style mansion that was formerly the residence of the Seitō family. This building is a

Meiji-period The is an era of Japanese history that extended from October 23, 1868 to July 30, 1912. The Meiji era was the first half of the Empire of Japan, when the Japanese people moved from being an isolated feudal society at risk of colonization ...

fusion of

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

and

Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

architectural styles, with an octagonal turret, a faux marble pillar in the ''

tokonoma A , or simply , is a recessed space in a Japanese-style reception room, in which items for artistic appreciation are displayed. In English, a could be called an alcove. History There are two theories about the predecessor of : the first is ...

'', and ''

tatami A is a type of mat used as a flooring material in traditional Japanese-style rooms. Tatamis are made in standard sizes, twice as long as wide, about 0.9 m by 1.8 m depending on the region. In martial arts, tatami are the floor used for traini ...

'' floors. In 2002, the Place of Scenic Beauty designation was expanded by 2100 square meters to encompass the intake weir that led to the pond and the surrounding forest area. The Seitō family claims descent from Seitō Morihide, a retainer of

Hōjō Tokiyori Hōjō Tokiyori (, June 29, 1227 – December 24, 1263) was the fifth shikken (regent) of the Kamakura shogunate in Japan. Early life He was born to warrior monk Hōjō Tokiuji and a daughter of Adachi Kagemori. Rule Tokiyori became shikken f ...

in the

Kamakura period The is a period of Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura by the first ''shōgun'' Minamoto no Yoritomo after the conclusion of the Genpei War, which saw the struggle bet ...

. According to legend, Hōjō Tokiyori had an affair with a lady-in-waiting named Karaito Gozen. This incurred the wrath of his wife, and fearing for Karaito Gozen's safety, he entrusted her to Seitō Morihide with orders to hide her in a distant location with promises that they would eventually be reunited. Seitō Morihide took her to distant Tsuruga by sea, to a village in what is now

Fujisaki, Aomori is a town in Aomori Prefecture, Japan. , the town had an estimated population of 14,921 in 6068 households, and a population density of 400 persons per km². The total area of the town is . Geography Fujisaki occupies the flatlands within Minam ...

. However, after years went by, Karaito Gozen feared that Hōjō Tokiyori had a change of heart and she committed suicide by throwing herself in a pond. Unable to face Tokiyori, Seitō Morihide decided to remain in Tsugaru. His descendants became great landholders. In the

Meiji period The is an era of Japanese history that extended from October 23, 1868 to July 30, 1912. The Meiji era was the first half of the Empire of Japan, when the Japanese people moved from being an isolated feudal society at risk of colonization ...

, Seitō Moriyoshi served as village mayor and founded the Aomori Commercial Bank and Onoe Bank, and eventually became president of Onoe Bank. The garden remains in the hands of his descendants, but is open to the public.

References

External links

Seibi-en homepage

{{Authority control Gardens in Aomori Prefecture Hirakawa, Aomori Places of Scenic Beauty Buildings of the Meiji period Giyōfū architecture

Overview

See also

References

External links