Showing posts with label iwami ginzan. Show all posts
Showing posts with label iwami ginzan. Show all posts

Saturday, January 11, 2025

A Morning at Iwami Ginzan

 

The World Heritage Site of Iwami Ginzan is only 30 kilometers from my home, and as I had friend who had a business there I used to visit often, even before it became a World Heritage site in 2007. All these photos are from one such trip. The first needs no explanation.


This is a window in a small seated shelter along the footpath that runs along the stream from the main parking area up the valley towards the mine...

The next photo is  of the Fudo Myo statue at the entrance to Seisuiji Temple.


The photo below needs no explanation...


The photo below is a lightshade at my friends shop that seems to be based on the Japanese umbrella


The next couple of shots are of some flower displays along the main street of Omori;


I recently posted another set of such shots taken on a May 5th visit.


Below is a gate into the garden of a wealthy merchant's property.


No explanation need for the photo below....


A different photo of the some scene shown below is in a post I did on the facades of Omori.


Some other earlier posts on Iwami Ginzan include these posts on the Fall colours....


Other posts on Iwami Ginzan include...


For a shot of this entrance to the wealthy merchants home, but with a different painting and different flower display see the Omori in 2D post.


Thursday, December 26, 2024

Omori Floral



Up in the mountains not far from here is the Iwami Ginzan World Heritage Site, and the village of Omori is a large part of it.


Pretty much just one long street in the narrow valley below the mine, Omori is where the samurai, bureaucrats, and merchants lived.


Before it was made a World Heritage site the town was already a Preservation District and so is mostly made up of Edo Period architecture and had the unsightly power poles removed.


All these photos were take on a one kilometer walk down the main street of the town on a May 5th.


While some of the flowers are planted in planters, pots,or in the ground, many others are cut flowers displayed in sections of bamboo tied to drainpipes.







Sunday, December 15, 2024

Sutra Storehouse at Anyoji Temple

 


Anyoji Temple in Iwami Ginzan, the World Heritage silver mine area in Shimane is known as the Crustal Temple, but I will cover that in a later post. For now we are looking at the Sutra Storehouse of the temple.


Originally located on top of the mountain, it was founded as a Tendai temple in the early15th century but converted to Pure Land sect in 1523.


The storehouse, said to be from when it was a Tendai temple, has an excellent piece of kote-e above the door. Kote-e, literally "trowel picture" are plaster reliefs found mostly on temples and storehouses, though sometimes on homes. Further examples can be found in this post on Kitsuki.


The storehouse also houses a statue of Shaka Nyorai, Shakyamuni, the historical Buddha.


Flanked by attendants, it is also said to date from when the temple was Tendai.


Thursday, December 14, 2023

Ido Shrine

 


Ido Shrine in Omori, part of the Iwami Ginzan World Heritage Site, was established in 1888 and worships the deified spirit of Ido Heizaimon, a former magistrate of the district who is known as the "Potato Magistrate".


He became the magistrate of the district in 1731, and in the following year, the Kyoho Famine struck western Japan. Officially there were 12,000 deaths attributed to the famine but in reality, the number was much higher, probably about 169,000. The causes of the famine seem to have been a combination of bad weather and insect infestation leading to a massive increase in the price of rice.


Before receiving permission from the Shogunate, Ido opened the government granaries and distributed the rice to the local population, but mostly he is known for introducing Sweet Potato into the region, hence ensuring that no one in Iwami died from famine.


There are more than 500 monuments in Shimane, Tottori, Okayama, and Hiroshima to the introduction of sweet potatoes by him.


On this visit I was walking the Iwami Kannon Pilgrimage and the previous post was on the 500 rakan of Rakanji Temple.


Sunday, October 8, 2023

500 Rakan at Iwami Ginzan

 


Rakan, sometimes called arhats, are said to be the disciples of the historical Buddha, and groups of 500 statues representing them can be found all over Japan.


The collection of 500 rakan found in Omori, part of Iwami Ginzan Silver Mine, is unusual in that they are housed in several man-made caves dug into a hillside by miners working at the silver mine.


The rakan here at Iwami Ginzan were made to pray for the repose of the souls of those miners who died, and as the work was brutal and harsh, the life of a miner was usually quite short, which is why there were so many temples in the area.


One feature of Rakan is that every single one has a different features and expressions, and it is often said that while looking at rakan statues you will always find some that remind you of someone you know. The rakan here are included in the UNESCO World Heritage Site.


All the rakan here were made over a period of about 25 years and were completed in 1766. They were all attributed to a stonemason from nearby Fukumitsu with the pseudonym Toshitada, who is also credited with creating the 3 arched bridges that cross the stream to reach the rakan caves. It is thought that members of his family and other apprentices had a hand in the work


Rakan-ji Temple was established across from the rakan caves in 1764. It is a Shingon temple and the honzon is an Amida. A Yakushi hall was moved to the grounds from higher up in the valley.


Rakanji Temple is one of 10 "guest temples" on the Iwami Kannon Pilgrimage. Kannon pilgrimages usually have 36 main temples and a few "extra" temples, but this Iwami pilgrimage has a total of 49 temples so is often referred to as Iwami Mandala Pilgrimage.


The previous post in this series was Seisuiji Temple, located further up the valley closer to the mine. A recent post that also featured rakan statues  was Togakuji Temple in Matsue.


Wednesday, August 30, 2023

Tomogaura Tomokan

 


Tomokan is the name given to a couple of refurbished buildings in the tiny fishing village of Tomogaura, part of the World Heritage Sites of the Iwami Ginzan Silver Mines as it was one of the ports that serviced the mines.


It is thought they were originally built in the early to mid 19th century. The outbuilding is open all year round and has exhibitions connected to the port and the route to the mine.


The main house is only open from March through November. Tomokan is unmanned and free to enter.


If you are in the area then it is a good opportunity to look around a small, traditional home. My house was built about a hundred years later but used a similar construction . What is unusual is that both buildings are completely clad in sheets of cedar bark.


I earlier posted on the old harbour itself.