Tokaido
One of the Five Highways, the Tokaido, connecting Edo with Kyoto, was the most important road of the Edo period
In ancient times, the Tokaido was the eastern sea circuit that ran east along the Pacific coast, one of the five provinces and seven circuits (goki shichido). In the Kamakura period (1180–1333), however, the name “Tokaido” came to signify the route that ran through that region. In the Edo period (1603–1867), the Tokaido was one of the Five Highways that extended from Edo. The origin of the route was can be traced back to 1601, when Ieyasu Tokugawa established a transportation system to ensure convenient official travel. In the years thereafter, the highway was gradually built and improved. As it connected Edo with Kyoto, the Tokaido was the most important of the Five Highways, and as such, it was placed under the direct jurisdiction of the Shogunate. There were 53 post stations between the bridge Nihonbashi in Edo and Sanjo Great Bridge in Kyoto, commonly known as “The Fifty-Three Stations of the Tokaido.” The Tokaido route almost entirely overlaps the modern Japan National Route 1, although back then there were no bridges over the Oi and Tenryu rivers, and the section between Miya and Kuwana post stations on Ise Bay was traveled by sea. Even though there were checkpoints in Hakone and Arai, many people traveled on the highway, since the route offered excellent post stations and was well maintained. The Tokaido was the subject of numerous travel journals and guidebooks. Two works about the Tokaido, the ukiyo-e series Tokaido gojusan tsugi (Fifty-three Stations of the Tokaido) by Hiroshige Utagawa and the novel Tokaidochu hizakurige (Hoofing It along the Tokaido Route) by Ikku Jippensha, were widely popular.
Related People, Things and Events
Books
Tokai-do
Related Works
保永堂版東海道五拾三次
Videos
Past Exhibitions
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Institutions Holding Related Materials
横浜市都筑区にある市立博物館。展示に「東海道と神奈川宿」がある。
東京都墨田区にある都立博物館。日本橋など東海道に関する展示がある。
The National Diet Library (NDL), founded in 1948, is the library which belongs to the Diet. The NDL assists the activities of the National Diet. The Library collects and conserves materials and information both from Japan and abroad, serving as a foundation of knowledge and culture and providing library services to administrative and judicial entities and Japanese citizens.
As Japan’s representative museum, Tokyo National Museum collects, preserves, displays, and researches the cultural properties of Asia with a focus on Japan, and also provides educational programs.
Kyoto National Museum collects, preserves, displays, researches and provides educational programs focusing on cultural properties from Heian- through to Edo- period Japan, when the capital was located there.
External Links
国土交通省関東地方整備局の横浜国道事務所が運営するサイト。神奈川県内の東海道の歴史などを紹介している。
References
- 平凡社
- 加藤友康 [ほか]編,吉川弘文館
- 歴史学研究会 編,岩波書店