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37-561: Kyoto Gyoen National Garden ( 京都御所 , Kyōto-gosho ) is a 65-hectare national garden of Japan that was established after the Japanese capital was transferred from Kyoto to Tokyo. It is situated around the Kyoto Imperial Palace . This article related to a garden in Japan is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Kyoto Imperial Palace The Kyoto Imperial Palace

74-475: A blend of architectural elements of shinden zukuri and shoin zukuri styles. The Kogosho Conference was held here on the night of December 9, 1867, the declaration of the restoration of imperial rule ( osei fukko ). The structure burnt down in 1954 and was reconstructed in 1958. The study hall Ogakumonjo ( 御学問所 ) was for reading rites, a monthly poetry recital and also a place the Emperor received nobles. It

111-486: A cherry ( sakura ) on the eastern, left side, and a tachibana orange tree on the right to the west. The garden of white gravel played an important role in the ceremony. The center of the Shishin-den is surrounded by a hisashi ( 庇 ) , a long, thin hallway which surrounded the main wing of an aristocrat's home, in traditional Heian architecture. Within this is a wide open space, crossed by boarded-over sections, leading to

148-486: A hipped and gabled roof, and is primarily cypress wood. Originally a place where the Emperor would conduct his own personal affairs, the Seiryō-den was later used for various gatherings and meetings as well. In the center is an area where the Emperor would rest, and on the east side of the hall, an area of two tatami was set aside for dignitaries and aristocrats to sit. Here was where the Emperor could conduct formal affairs. On

185-617: A number of buildings, along with the imperial residence. The neighboring building to the north is the sentō ( 仙洞 ) , or residence of the retired Emperor, and beyond that, across Imadegawa Street , sits Doshisha University . The Imperial Household Agency maintains the building and the grounds and also runs public tours. The main buildings are, among other halls, the Shishinden ( 紫宸殿 , Hall for State Ceremonies) , Seiryōden ( 清涼殿 , Emperor's Habitual Residence) , Kogosho ( 小御所 , Court Room) , Ogakumonjo ( 御学問所 , Imperial Study or Library ) , and

222-568: A number of residences for the Empress, high-ranking aristocrats and government officials. Dignitaries with special permission for official visits used to enter the palace through the Okurumayose ( 御車寄 ) entrance. The Shodaibunoma ( 諸大夫の間 ) building was used as a waiting room for dignitaries on their official visits to the palace. They were ushered into three different anterooms according to their ranks. The Shinmikurumayose ( 新御車寄 ) structure

259-404: A three-tiered dais painted with black lacquer with balustrades of vermilion. On both sides of the throne are two little tables, where two of the three Imperial regalia (the sword and the jewel), and the privy seal and state seal would be placed. On top of the canopy is a statue of a large phoenix called hō-ō . Surrounding the canopy are eight small phoenixes, jewels and mirrors. Hanging from

296-451: Is a shoin zukuri style building with an irimoya hiwadabuki roof. The Otsunegoten ( 御常御殿 ) was built and used as the Emperor's residence from 1590 until the capital was transferred to Tokyo in 1869. It is the largest structure of the palace with fifteen rooms. Facing it is the Gonaeitei garden. The Osuzumisho ( 御涼所 ) is the summer residence for the Emperor. The Koshun ( 迎春 )

333-638: Is a study hall that was used by Emperor Komei , who reigned from 1846 to 1866. The Omima ( 御三間 ) was used for unofficial ceremonies such as the Star Festival and the Bon festival . The Palace's Suzaku-mon ( 朱雀門 ) is walking distance from JR Nijō Station . 35°01′31″N 135°45′44″E  /  35.02528°N 135.76222°E  / 35.02528; 135.76222 Aoi Matsuri The Aoi Matsuri ( 葵祭 ) , or " Hollyhock Festival", (although commonly, but mistakenly identified as "hollyhock",

370-458: Is made out of copper and not wooden shingles. The Shishinden ( 紫宸殿 ) is the most important ceremonial building within the palace grounds. The enthronement ceremonies of Emperor Taisho and Emperor Showa took place here. The hall is 33 by 23 metres (108 by 75 ft) in size, and features a traditional architectural style, with a gabled and hipped roof. On either side of its main stairway were planted trees which would become very famous and sacred,

407-627: Is the latest of the imperial palaces built in the northeastern part of the old capital of Heian-kyō (now known as Kyoto ) after the abandonment of the Heian Palace that was located to the west of the current palace during the Heian period . The Palace lost much of its function at the time of the Meiji Restoration , when the capital functions were moved to Tokyo in 1869. However, Emperor Taishō and Shōwa still had their enthronement ceremonies at

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444-696: The Aoi Matsuri : the Saiō-Dai and the Imperial Messenger. Historically the Saiō-Dai was a woman of the imperial house who was chosen from the sisters and daughters of the emperor to dedicate herself to the Shimogamo shrine. The role of Saiō-Dai was to maintain ritual purity and to represent the emperor at the festival. Nowadays, the role of the Saiō-Dai is a stand-in by an unmarried woman in Kyoto. She has to have

481-621: The Edo period , it was revived, but in the 2nd year of the Meiji period (1869), when the capital was moved from Kyoto to Tokyo , observance of the festival procession stopped. In Meiji-17 (1885), it was again revived as part of a government plan to enliven Kyoto. All but the rituals at the shrine fronts were discontinued from 1944, due to the Pacific War . At last, the festival procession started to be held again from 1953. The Saiō-Dai festival princess tradition

518-537: The Kamo Festival . It is held on 15 May of each year. According to the ancient, presumed historical and regarded as accurate with some fantastic embellishments, record Nihon Shoki , the festival originated during the reign of Emperor Kinmei (reigned CE 539 - 571). The ancient records known as the Honchō getsurei ( 本朝月令 ) and Nenchūgyōji hissho (年中行事秘抄) reveal that a succession of disastrous rains with high winds ruined

555-710: The Kenreimon , the inner gate Jomeimon would appear, which is painted in vermilion and roofed in tile. This leads to the Shishin-den , which is the Hall for State Ceremonies. The Gekkamon is a smaller gate on the west side of the main courtyard. The annual Aoi Matsuri in May is the procession of the Saiō-Dai , historically a priestess of the imperial house, to the Shimogamo Shrine and Kamigamo Shrine . The procession departs in front of

592-459: The Kenreimon . Another gate in the outer courtyard is the Kenshunmon , which has a similar architectural style to the Kenreimon . Located next to the Kenshunmon is a square where the traditional ball game Kemari is played. The Shunkōden ( 春興殿 ) was constructed to house the sacred mirror on the occasion of the enthronement ceremony of Emperor Taisho in 1915. The roof is modern in that it

629-529: The Kyoto Imperial Palace in front of the main gate Kenreimon (建礼門) and slowly works its way towards the Shimogamo Shrine and finally the Kamigamo Shrine . When they finally arrive at both shrines, the Saiō-Dai and Imperial Messenger perform their rituals. The Saiō-Dai simply pays her respects to the deities and the Imperial Messenger intones the imperial rescript praising the deities and requesting their continued favor. There are two main figures in

666-467: The Takamikura , but is slightly smaller and more simple in comparison. The canopy is decorated with a statue of the mythical bird ranchō . The Imperial throne is always placed in the center of the main hall, the michodai to the right of it. Both thrones are kept away from public view through screens called misu . The Seiryōden ( 清涼殿 ) sits to the west of the Shishin-den, facing east. It, too, has

703-707: The deities of the Kamo shrines as protectors of the Heian capital, and established the Aoi Matsuri as an annual imperial event. The festival saw its peak of grandeur in the middle of the Heian period, but this waned in the Kamakura period and the following Muromachi period , and as the nation entered the Sengoku period , the festival procession was discontinued. In the Genroku era (1688–1704) of

740-599: The "aoi" actually belongs to the birthwort family and translates as " wild ginger "—Asarum) is one of the three main annual festivals held in Kyoto , Japan , the other two being the Festival of the Ages (Jidai Matsuri) and the Gion Festival . It is a festival of the two Kamo shrines in the north of the city, Shimogamo Shrine and Kamigamo Shrine . The festival may also be referred to as

777-547: The area walled. When the capital was moved to Tokyo, the residences of the court nobles were demolished and most of Kyōto Gyoen is now a park open to the public. The Imperial Palace has been officially located in this area since the final abandonment of the Heian Palace in late 12th century. However, it was already much earlier that the de facto residence of the Emperors was often not in the Inner Palace ( 内裏 , dairi ) of

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814-462: The canopy are metal ornaments and curtains. The sliding door that hid the Emperor from view is called kenjō no shōji ( 賢聖障子 ) , and has an image of 32 celestial saints painted upon it, which became one of the primary models for all of Heian period painting. The Michodai ( 御帳台 ) is the August Seat of the Empress. The current throne was constructed in 1913. Its colour and shape are the same as

851-469: The central throne room. The Takamikura ( 高御座 ) is the Imperial throne . It has been used on the occasion of the enthronement ceremonies commencing in 707 in the reign of Empress Genmei . The present throne was modeled on the original design, constructed in 1913, two years before the enthronement of Emperor Taishō . The actual throne is a chair in black lacquer, placed under an octagonal canopy resting on

888-504: The grain crops, and epidemics had spread through the country. Because diviners placed the cause on divine punishment by the Kamo deities , the Emperor sent his messenger with a retinue to the shrine to conduct various acts to appease the deities, in prayer for a bountiful harvest. These included riding a galloping horse. This became an annual ritual, and the galloping horse performance developed into an equestrian archery performance. According to

925-477: The historical record known as the Shoku Nihongi (続日本記, so many people had come to view this equestrian performance on the festival day in the 2nd year of the reign of Emperor Monmu (r. 697–707) that the event was banned. In the ninth century, Emperor Kanmu established the seat of the imperial throne in Kyoto. This represented the beginning of the Heian period in Japanese history. Emperor Kanmu recognized

962-554: The north side of the hall was an enclosed area where the Emperor would sleep at night; later, Emperors began to use the official residence. The west side was set aside for the Emperor's breakfasts, and also contained the lavatories, while the south side was used by the keeper of the Imperial Archives. This area contained paintings by the masters of the Tosa school , and just outside, various rare bamboos were planted. The original structure

999-530: The oldest and most important buildings in Japan, was destroyed by fire and rebuilt many times over the course of its history. It has been destroyed and rebuilt eight times, six of them during the 250-year-long peace of the Edo period. The version currently standing was completed in 1855, with an attempt at reproducing the Heian period architecture and style of the original dairi of the Heian Palace. The grounds include

1036-516: The original Heian period palace, but in one of the temporary residences ( 里内裏 , sato-dairi ) in this part of the city and often provided to the Emperor by powerful noble families. The present palace is a direct successor—after iterations of rebuilding—to one of these sato-dairi palaces, the Tsuchimikado Dono ( 土御門殿 , Tsuchimikado-dono ) of the Fujiwara clan . The palace, like many of

1073-589: The palace. The Palace is situated in the Kyōto-gyoen ( 京都御苑 ) , a large rectangular enclosure 1,300 metres (4,300 ft) north to south and 700 metres (2,300 ft) east to west. It also contains the Sentō Imperial Palace gardens and the Kyoto State Guest House . The estate dates from the early Edo period when the residence of high court nobles were grouped close together with the palace and

1110-428: The procession ( rotō-no-gi ) and the shrine rites. The procession is led by the Imperial Messenger. Following the imperial messenger are: two oxcarts, four cows, thirty-six horses, and six hundred people. The six hundred people are all wearing traditional dress of Heian nobles ( ōmiyabito ), while the oxcart ( gissha ) is adorned with artificial wisteria flowers. The procession starts at 10:30 on May 15 and leaves

1147-430: The roofs of homes for protection. The plants used in the Aoi Matsuri may not be hollyhock, but possibly wild ginger . Although due to the rarity of these plants, other plants with similarly shaped leaves have been used in the festival instead, such as the leaves of the katsura tree . There are several events that take place during the month but the most important event is on 15 May. There are two parts to Aoi Matsuri:

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1184-405: The three attributes of wisdom, grace, and social standing. The selection process is strict and the news is announced in the press. It is the highest honour a woman can receive in Kyoto. The Saiō-Dai is dressed in the traditional style of the Heian court. Traditional Heian court dress for women would be wearing several layers of exquisitely colored silk robes. The Saiō-Dai wears twelve layers of

1221-410: The traditional style robes ( jūnihitoe ). To maintain ritual purity , the Saiō-Dai goes through several ceremonies of purification before the procession of the festival. The Imperial Messenger leads the festival procession on horseback. During the Heian period he would be a Fifth-Rank courtier holding the office of middle or lesser captain and was usually a man destined for high office. His role

1258-458: Was built as a new carriage entrance on the occasion of the enthronement ceremony of Emperor Taisho in 1915. For state ceremonies, the dignitaries would enter through the Kenreimon ( 建礼門 ) , which has a cypress-wood roof, and is supported by four unpainted wooden pillars. This gate would have been used on the rare occasions of the Emperor welcoming a foreign diplomat or dignitary, as well as for many other important state ceremonies. Passing through

1295-499: Was built as the Emperor's residence at the end of the 8th century and was used until the 11th century. The Seiryō-den was rebuilt in this location in 1790 CE, on a smaller scale than the original building but preserving the original structure. The Kogosho ( 小御所 ) is a place where the Emperor received bannermen under the direct control of the Tokugawa shogun ( buke ). It was also used for some rituals. This distinctive building shows

1332-454: Was initiated in 1956. The Saiō (斎王) was an unmarried female member of the Japanese imperial house. The festival is named after the hollyhock ( aoi ) leaves used as decoration throughout the celebration as well as offerings to the gods. During the Heian Period, these leaves were once believed to protect against natural disasters such as earthquakes and thunder, and were often hung under

1369-461: Was to read the imperial rescript of the shrines and present the emperor’s offerings. During the Heian period, the Saiō-Dai and the Imperial messenger would be accompanied by ten dancers and twelve musicians. Also present during the procession are guards ( kebiishii), government officials, civic officials, military retainers, and a delegate from Yamashiro ( Yamashiro-no-Tsukai) . Also featured at

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