Kisokaidô: Miyanokoshi - Station 36

This print is one of the more experimental of Hiroshige’s prints. A family in a foggy night, a masterpiece staged with three distinct levels: in the background, the roofs of the station (1) and a traveller with his conical hat (2), in the middle, the clump of trees is cast as silhouette against the full moon and in the foreground, a family crossing a small bridge amidst veils of mist. The father (3) is carrying a sleeping child on his back, the mother (4) protectively clasping her infant whom she supports in a sling and their daughter (5) carrying a few objects in a bundle who is turning to point to the traveller or to the distant roofs. The scenario here is a matter of speculation: The family comes back from a family reunion in the next village or most likely, they are fleeing their debts in the dead of night. Since freedom of movement was restricted in Edo period Japan, such ventures had to be undertaken after dark. It is possible that Hiroshige wanted to describe (as in print #14 Takasaki) the economic difficulties that beset the countryside during the 1830’s.

This print did not change much, except from the palette and the different hues of blue and in the gradations on the bridge and the banks of the river.

(Source: The 69 stations of the Kisokaido, Sebastian Izzard, Brazillier 2008)

And now ?

We are at 67ri 32 cho or 267km/167mi from Tokyo. At Harano, just after Miyanokoshi, a monument tells us we are at the midpoint of the Road. 267km/167mi to go to reach Otsu….

In the Hiyoshi hamlet, before entering Miyanokoshi lies the famous Hata-age Hachiman Shrine where Yoshinaka raised his army and started his move against the Taira (picture on the right). The shrine is now very small and nothing remains of the large mansion. It is hard to imagine thousands of men-at-war meeting there and starting a war. It is in Miyanokoshi Tokuon-ji that Yoshinaka’s mortuary tablet is kept along with Tomoe’s. It is the town’s main temple and has a nice main building with a copper roof dated 1723.

In 1843, the station had 600 inhabitants with 135 buildings, one honjin, one waki-honjin and 21 inns. Today Miyanokoshi is part of Kiso-Fukishima town and is a small village without any lodging, but has an interesting museum dedicated to samurai culture. We are in woodworker country. House frameworks, furniture, bath tubs are assembled by tenon and mortise without any nail. The wood comes from hinoki or Japanese cypress.

The road now follows the Kiso River before reaching Miyanokoshi station. This stretch is popular with fishermen and hikers and the views of the valley are superb. Then the road goes around Mt.Yamabuki whose name is said to derive from the name of one of Kiso Yoshinaka’s mistresses. The Kiso valley is imbued with the memory of Kiso Yoshinaka, also called the Asahi Shogun (Sunrise Shogun) and his mistresses. Yoshinaka, born in 1154 in the Eastern part of Japan was a member of a branch of the Minamoto clan, one of the two clans fighting for hegemony in 12^th century Japan (the other clan being the Taira). His father was killed when he was one year old and he was raised by his uncle in the Kiso valley and adopted Kiso as family name. He became powerful and built a mansion near Miyanokoshi. In 1180 he raised the flag of rebellion against the Taira clan and within two years had conquered Kyoto and ousted the Taira. But he went against his cousin Yoritomo, head of Minamoto clan , had to flee and was killed in 1184. His other mistress Tomoe, known for her prowess with a bow, managed to escape and found refuge in the valley. A monument with a double-meaning poem (Tomoe also means “Whirl”) was built near a bridge crossing the Kiso River (picture on the right).