osaka – Japanese history and culture

Looking for Hiroshige’s Japan

The rain misted down and I had two choices: the road up the hill, or the one alongside the river.

In Japanese folklore the female demon (oni) Hannya figures prominently. Often depicted in traditional Noh and Bunraku plays using a

Funerary objects meant to be seen Haniwa (“clay cylinder” or “circle of clay” in Japanese) are large hollow, earthenware funerary

Sad news I found today about the closing of a famous and traditional Japanese inn. It dates way back to

Nishi Honganji is the mother temple for the Jodo Shinshu sect of Japanese Buddhism established by Shinran Shonan who lived

Shikoku is host to the famous 88 temple pilgrimage. It is said to take up to 3 months to complete

On this Day, December 16, 1614, a number of Samurai women were killed by cannon fire in Osaka Castle. 400

Not something I have done before but I found this beautiful Ukiyo-e print with some history attached to it. It’s

Goto Matabei’s Armour. Among Kuroda Nagamasa’s captains was a samurai named Goto Matabei, a much-respected professional warrior who often proudly

Wow, so busy teaching at the moment so I haven’t had time to do any more research into my next

The newly refurbished roof of Himeji Castle is really, really white. No wonder people in Japan are bewildered. This isn’t

I have a lot of old photos on my hard drive so I thought I would share some with you.

Just a short post. I found this photo of Osaka Castle from the 50s when it was being rebuilt after

I have a always been curious about the Japanese population during different eras of Japanese history. Especially during the Mongol

The Kofun Period (古墳時代 Kofun jidai) refers to the protohistoric period of Japan, usually dated from 250 to ca 538