Tsuwano: Walking Through the Hundred Landscapes of a Castle Town
Explore Tsuwano, Shimane, through the Tsuwano Hyakkeizu (One Hundred Landscapes of Tsuwano), a collection of 100 paintings documenting life in this castle town around 160 years ago.
Tsuwano is recognized as a Japan Heritage site through the story Tsuwano Then and Now: Walking the Hundred Views, which explores the town's history and traditions. As part of our collaboration with Japan Heritage, we're exploring how each place tells a story that shapes Japan's cultural identity beyond its better-known tourist destinations.
Japan Heritage is an initiative by Japan's Agency for Cultural Affairs. It recognizes stories that connect history, culture and local traditions across the country. Local communities bring each story to life by preserving and sharing the tangible and intangible heritage that makes their region unique.
Set in western Shimane, Tsuwano developed as a castle town under the rule of the Kamei family. Its former samurai quarter, historic buildings and traditional festivals offer a glimpse of the town as it was in the final years of the Edo period. The Hyakkeizu brings these places and customs into focus, connecting the town's history with what visitors can see and experience today.
Created by Kurimoto Kakusai, who served the Tsuwano domain as a tea ceremony attendant, the collection captures 100 scenes of local landscapes, customs, food and daily life. Around half of the scenes and traditions it depicts can still be seen, thanks to generations of local efforts to preserve Tsuwano's heritage.
Hyakkeizu: One Hundred Landscapes of Tsuwano
The Tsuwano Hyakkeizu (One Hundred Landscapes of Tsuwano) is a series of five books containing 100 paintings and detailed explanations of life in the Tsuwano domain, the feudal territory governed by the Kamei family, around 160 years ago. The Kamei family commissioned Kurimoto Kakusai, a tea ceremony attendant who also studied painting, to document the area's landscapes, customs, food and daily life. He spent three years and eight months completing the collection, creating a detailed record of Tsuwano at the end of the Edo period.
The paintings depict Tsuwano as it was when two of its most famous sons, the author Mori Ōgai and the philosopher Nishi Amane, were studying at the domain school, Yorokan, in Tonomachi. Their homes stood south of the lord's residence, surrounded by farmland, and the Hyakkeizu provide a glimpse of the town they knew.
What makes Tsuwano special is how much of this historical landscape has survived. Over the following century, railways, national roads and modern development came to the valley. Throughout these changes, local residents worked to preserve the town's historic character and traditions. Today, around half of the landscapes and traditional events depicted in the paintings remain as they were at the end of the Edo period, allowing visitors to connect the historical record with Tsuwano as it is now.
You can see the paintings at the Tsuwano Japan Heritage Center in the former samurai district. It's a useful starting point before exploring the town.
Tonomachi: The Old Samurai Quarter
Tonomachi shows why Tsuwano is known as the “Little Kyoto of San’in.” White plaster walls and dark red roof tiles line the street, alongside a stone canal filled with brightly colored carp, a scene also recorded in the Hyakkeizu.
Small cafés and craft shops occupy the historic buildings, making the street an easy place to wander on foot. We stumbled across a beautifully renovated historic tea shop, Komien Kamiryo tea, which offers tastings of several local teas.
Taikodani Inari Shrine: A Tunnel of Torii
Above the town sits Taikodani Inari Shrine, often counted among Japan’s five great Inari shrines. Founded in 1773 by Kamei Norisada, the seventh lord of Tsuwano, the shrine is approached through a tunnel of around 1,000 vermilion torii gates. Many were donated by people giving thanks for wishes fulfilled or praying for success in business.
The climb through the tunnel of gates ends with a sweeping view over the valley. At the top, we found a unique way of praying. Visitors buy a set of candles and abura-age (fried tofu), then offer them at four worship spots around the shrine. In Shinto tradition, white foxes (kitsune) are the sacred messengers of Inari, and according to folklore they’re especially fond of fried tofu.
Tea in Tsuwano
Tea has been part of Tsuwano’s hospitality since the Edo period, when the lords served sencha to their guests. Today, you can visit Mamecha no Shusuien, a tea farm run by the fourth generation of its family. You can sip tea while looking over the fields toward Mount Aono.
The town sits on one of Japan’s clearest rivers, and locals have long benefited from its rich nutrients through the herbal teas grown in the valley. Here, tea is about more than flavor. It has traditionally been valued almost like a medicine, a daily drink that people believe keeps the body and mind well.
Festivals that Step Out of the Paintings
Many of the scenes in the Hyakkeizu depict local festivals, some of which continue to take place today.
Sagi-mai (Heron Dance), July: Held on July 20 and 27 as part of the annual festival at Yasaka Shrine, performers dressed as white herons dance through the streets to the sound of flutes, drums and bells. The ritual is recorded in painting no. 17 of the Hyakkeizu.
Bon Odori, August: As the sun sets, lanterns light up the samurai district, food stalls open and taiko drums begin to play. Tsuwano’s Bon Odori is distinctive for its dancers, who wear black hoods and white costumes that conceal their faces and bodies.
According to local legend, the dance began as a battle strategy more than 400 years ago. A clan leader learned that his enemy loved Bon Odori, so his warriors disguised themselves as dancers, hiding their armor and weapons beneath their costumes before launching a surprise attack. They won, and the dance was passed down to celebrate the victory. The Hyakkeizu also records the Bon dance in painting no. 99. It was said to be the one night of the year when samurai and townspeople danced side by side.
Tsuwano holds a special place in our hearts. Walking its streets, we felt as if we had stepped back in time, and watching the town light up in the evening was unforgettable. Locals gathered in the streets and joined the Bon Odori, knowing every step by heart. From the cafés to the restaurants, everyone we met was warm and welcoming. It was one of the most memorable places we’ve visited.
Through our journeys across Japan with Japan Heritage, from Dewa Sanzan and the Nakasendo Trail to Onomichi and now Tsuwano, one thing keeps coming back: travel in Japan connects people, time and the stories of the past.
To learn more, read the official Japan Heritage story Tsuwano Then and Now or the guide An Ancient Guidebook to Tsuwano.
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