The , also known as Kyū Shiba Rikyū Onshi Teien ("Former Shiba Villa Imperial Gift Gardens") is a public

garden A garden is a planned space, usually outdoors, set aside for the cultivation, display, and enjoyment of plants and other forms of nature. The single feature identifying even the wildest wild garden is ''control''. The garden can incorporate bot ...

and former imperial garden in Minato ward, Tokyo, Japan. The garden is one of four surviving

Edo-period The , also known as the , is the period between 1600 or 1603 and 1868 in the history of Japan, when the country was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and some 300 regional ''daimyo'', or feudal lords. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengok ...

clan gardens in Tokyo, the others being Koishikawa Kōraku-en, Rikugi-en, and Hama Rikyu Garden. Kyū Shiba Rikyū is often regarded as the most beautifully designed garden in Tokyo, and was once called the "most beautiful" scene in Japan.Kyu-Shiba-rikyu Gardens, Tokyo
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History

The site of the Kyū Shiba Rikyū Garden was originally part of

Tokyo Bay is a bay located in the southern Kantō region of Japan spanning the coasts of Tokyo, Kanagawa Prefecture, and Chiba Prefecture, on the southern coast of the island of Honshu. Tokyo Bay is connected to the Pacific Ocean by the Uraga Channel. Th ...

. The land was reclaimed between 1655 and 1658. In 1678 the site was used for the official

samurai The samurai () were members of the warrior class in Japan. They were originally provincial warriors who came from wealthy landowning families who could afford to train their men to be mounted archers. In the 8th century AD, the imperial court d ...

style residence of

Ōkubo Tadamoto , also Okubo, Ookubo and Ohkubo, is a Japanese surname. Notable people with the surname include: *Ōkubo clan **Ōkubo Tadayo (1532–1594), Japanese daimyō of the Sengoku period ** Ōkubo Tadasuke (1537–1613), Japanese daimyō of the Sengoku a ...

(1604–1670), member of the

Ōkubo clan The were a ''samurai'' kin group which rose to prominence in the Sengoku period and the Edo periods.Meyer, Eva-Maria"Gouverneure von Kyôto in der Edo-Zeit."Universität Tübingen (in German) Under the Tokugawa shogunate, the Ōkubo, as heredit ...

and an official of the

Tokugawa shogunate The Tokugawa shogunate, also known as the was the military government of Japan during the Edo period from 1603 to 1868. The Tokugawa shogunate was established by Tokugawa Ieyasu after victory at the Battle of Sekigahara, ending the civil wars ...

. The residence garden was designed by garden designers from the

Odawara Domain file:Odawara 2006-02-21 c.jpg, 250px, Odawara Castle, Headquarters of the Odawara Domain was a Japanese Han (Japan), domain of the Edo period, located primarily in western Sagami Province (modern-day Kanagawa Prefecture). It was centered on Odawa ...

, until 1614 under the rule of ''

daimyō were powerful Japanese magnates, feudal lords who, from the 10th century to the early Meiji era, Meiji period in the middle 19th century, ruled most of Japan from their vast hereditary land holdings. They were subordinate to the shogun and no ...

s'' from the Ōkubo clan. The garden was then known as Rakujuen. At that time, the garden included a beach to Tokyo Bay, however, as Tokyo expanded the sea next to the garden was

reclaimed Land reclamation, often known as reclamation, and also known as land fill (not to be confused with a waste landfill), is the process of creating new land from oceans, seas, riverbeds or lake beds. The land reclaimed is known as reclamation ...

, and there is no connection to the ocean anymore. A remaining ocean water inlet is not used. The residence changed ownership throughout time, and around 1860 belonged to the Kishū family of the

Tokugawa clan The is a Japanese dynasty which produced the Tokugawa shoguns who ruled Japan from 1603 to 1868 during the Edo period. It was formerly a powerful ''daimyō'' family. They nominally descended from Emperor Seiwa (850–880) and were a branch of ...

. In 1871 the ownership changed again to the

Arisugawa-no-miya The was one of the shinnōke, branches of the Imperial Family of Japan which were, until 1947, eligible to succeed to the Chrysanthemum Throne in the event that the main line should die out. History The Arisugawa-no-miya house was founded by Pr ...

clan. In 1875, the

Imperial Household Agency The (IHA) is an agency of the government of Japan in charge of state matters concerning the Imperial House of Japan, Imperial Family, and the keeping of the Privy Seal of Japan, Privy Seal and State Seal of Japan. From around the 8th century ...

purchased the residence and it became the Shiba Detached Imperial Villa and in 1891 a European style guest house was constructed. In the

Great Kantō earthquake Great may refer to: Descriptions or measurements * Great, a relative measurement in physical space, see Size * Greatness, being divine, majestic, superior, majestic, or transcendent People * List of people known as "the Great" * Artel Great (bo ...

on September 1, 1923, all buildings and trees on the site were destroyed by fire. Subsequently, in January 1924, the site was donated to

Tokyo City was a Cities of Japan, municipality in Japan and capital of Tokyo Prefecture (1868–1943), Tokyo Prefecture (or ''Tokyo-fu'') which existed from 1 May 1889 until the establishment of Tokyo Metropolis on 1 July 1943. The historical boundari ...

as part of celebrations preceding the

Shōwa period Shōwa most commonly refers to: * Hirohito (1901–1989), the 124th Emperor of Japan, known posthumously as Emperor Shōwa ** Shōwa era (昭和), the era of Hirohito from 1926 to 1989 * Showa Corporation, a Japanese suspension and shock manufactu ...

(1926 to 1989) of

Emperor The word ''emperor'' (from , via ) can mean the male ruler of an empire. ''Empress'', the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife (empress consort), mother/grandmother (empress dowager/grand empress dowager), or a woman who rules ...

Hirohito , Posthumous name, posthumously honored as , was the 124th emperor of Japan according to the traditional order of succession, from 25 December 1926 until Death and state funeral of Hirohito, his death in 1989. He remains Japan's longest-reigni ...

. The garden was rebuilt and opened to the public on April 20, 1924. In 1979 the

Government of Japan The Government of Japan is the central government of Japan. It consists of legislative, executive (government), executive and judiciary branches and functions under the framework established by the Constitution of Japan. Japan is a unitary st ...

designated the garden as a ''place of scenic beauty'' and ''special historic interest''. The size of the garden, however, was reduced to make space for the railway tracks on the north side.

Layout

The garden has an area of 43,070.53 m². There is a circular path around the central pond ''Sensui'' (9,000 m²), which is the focus of the garden. Originally this was a salt water pond, however, as the land around was reclaimed the pond was converted to freshwater. The pond includes four islands, the central ''Nakajima'' and the smaller ''Ukishima'', ''Oshima'', and ''Yukimi-toro''. Two bridges allow crossing of the pond via the larger island ''Nakajima''. ''Oshima'' is close to the shore and can also be crossed. The inspiration for the pond originates from

West Lake The West Lake (; ) is a freshwater lake in Hangzhou, China. Situated to the west of Hangzhou's former Hangzhou City Walls, walled city, the lake has a surface area of , stretching from north to south and from east to west. In the lake are four ...

Hangzhou Hangzhou, , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ; formerly romanized as Hangchow is a sub-provincial city in East China and the capital of Zhejiang province. With a population of 13 million, the municipality comprises ten districts, two counti ...

, and the rocks on the central island represent the mountains of West Lake. One corner of the pond includes a sandy beach area named ''Suhama'', although swimming is not recommended. The highest point of the park is the Oyama hill, from which a dry waterfall made from stone named ''Karetaki'' flows. A stone

lantern A lantern is a source of lighting, often portable. It typically features a protective enclosure for the light sourcehistorically usually a candle, a oil lamp, wick in oil, or a thermoluminescence, thermoluminescent Gas mantle, mesh, and often a ...

provides supposedly a good spot for snow viewing, although Tokyo rarely gets snow nowadays. Notable is also the wisteria trellis in the picnic area, especially when the wisteria blooms at the beginning of May. Besides the garden office there is also a

Japanese Archery 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 ...

range and a children's playground. The garden is surrounded by High-rise buildings and Skyscrapers.

Plants and animals

Plants found in the garden include

Japanese black pine ''Pinus thunbergii'' (syn: ''Pinus thunbergiana''), the black pine, Japanese black pine, or Japanese pine, is a pine tree native to coastal areas of Japan (Kyūshū, Shikoku and Honshū) and South Korea. It is called () in Korean language, Kore ...

, camphor trees,

azalea Azaleas ( ) are flowering shrubs in the genus ''Rhododendron'', particularly the former sections ''Rhododendron sect. Tsutsusi, Tsutsusi'' (evergreen) and ''Pentanthera'' (deciduous). Azaleas bloom in the spring (April and May in the temperate ...

, ''

Persea ''Persea'' is a genus of about 111 species of evergreen trees belonging to the laurel family, Lauraceae. The best-known member of the genus is the avocado, ''P. americana'', widely cultivated in subtropical regions for its large, edible fruit. O ...

'',

Japanese iris The term "Japanese iris" encompasses three species of Irises cultivated in gardens or growing wild in Japan: ''hanashōbu'' ('' Iris ensata''), ''kakitsubata'' ('' Iris laevigata'') and ''ayame'' (''Iris sanguinea''). Of these three species, ' ...

, ''

Platycodon grandiflorus ''Platycodon grandiflorus'' (from Ancient Greek "wide" and "bell") is a species of herbaceous flowering perennial plant of the family (biology), family Campanulaceae, and the only member of the genus ''Platycodon''. It is native plant, native ...

'', ''

Crinum latifolium ''Crinum latifolium'' is a herbaceous perennial flowering plant in the amaryllis family (Amaryllidaceae). It arises from an underground bulb. The flowering stems are stout, reaching about 2 m in height. The leaves are long, linear and ligu ...

'', Japanese wisteria, leopard plant, and

spider lily Spider lily is the common name for a number of different plant species within the subfamily Amaryllidoideae Amaryllidoideae (Amaryllidaceae ''s.s.'', amaryllids) is a subfamily of monocot flowering plants in the Family (biology), family Amaryll ...

. Wildlife include

little egret The little egret (''Egretta garzetta'') is a species of small heron in the family Ardeidae. It is a white bird with a slender black beak, long black legs and, in the western race, yellow feet. As an aquatic bird, it feeds in shallow water and on ...

Eastern spot-billed duck The eastern spot-billed duck or Chinese spot-billed duck (''Anas zonorhyncha'') is a species of dabbling duck that breeds in Palearctic, East and Southeast Asia. This species was formerly considered a subspecies of the Indian spot-billed duck and ...

s, and

carp The term carp (: carp) is a generic common name for numerous species of freshwater fish from the family (biology), family Cyprinidae, a very large clade of ray-finned fish mostly native to Eurasia. While carp are prized game fish, quarries and a ...

s, seasonally also

tufted duck The tufted duck (or tufted pochard) (''Aythya fuligula'') is a small diving duck with a population of nearly one million birds, found in northern Eurasia. They are partially migratory. The scientific name is derived from Ancient Greek , an unide ...

northern pintail The pintail or northern pintail (''Anas acuta'') is a duck species with wide geographic Range (biology), distribution that breeds in the northern areas of Europe and across the Palearctic and North America. It is bird migration, migratory an ...

s, and

common pochard The common pochard (; ''Aythya ferina''), known simply as pochard in the United Kingdom, is a medium-sized diving duck in the family Anatidae. It is widespread across the Palearctic. It breeds primarily in the steppe regions of Scandinavia and Si ...

Location

The park is located at 1-4-1 kaigan, Minato-Ku, Tokyo 105–0022, close to the JR

Hamamatsuchō Station is a railway station in Hamamatsuchō, Minato, Tokyo, Japan, operated by East Japan Railway Company (JR East) and Tokyo Monorail. Lines Hamamatsuchō Station is served by two JR East lines: the circular Yamanote Line and the Keihin-Tōhoku Li ...

Exit 1, or a five-minute walk from Daimon Station. The garden is also close to the Hamarikyu Gardens and the Tokyo World Trade Center.

References

External links