Uchiori in Kiyose (Local History Museum)
In Kiyose and the surrounding areas, from the Meiji era through the early Showa era, women—primarily from farming families—wove textiles known as “uchi-ori.”These were not produced for commercial sale but were woven by rural women for their families. Using materials they had on hand—such as silk thread extracted from broken cocoons and cotton thread—the weavers devised their own methods for processes like spinning and dyeing to complete the fabrics. In January Heisei 18, 166 items—including kimonos, haori jackets, textiles (including bolts of cloth), bedding, thread, and other garments (such as hanten and obi)—were designated as municipal tangible folk cultural properties; in December Heisei 19, an additional 201 items—including kimonos, haori […]
Events to Prevent Boarding House Evictions
This annual event, passed down in the Shitaku area, has been designated as an Intangible Folk Cultural Property of the capital. Every year on May 1 (now May 3), residents of the former Kiyoto Shitaku Village gather in front of the nagayamon gate at Entsu-ji Temple to make a large snake and a small snake out of straw. The completed giant snake is strung between two trees at the three-way intersection marking the former village boundary, while the smaller snakes are attached at 14 locations along the former village boundary, in a prayer to prevent epidemics and evil spirits from entering the village. It is said that back when rice […]
Nakazato Fire Flower Festival (Nakazato Fujizuka)
The “Nakazato Fire Flower Festival” is held every year on September 1 at the Nakazato Fujizuka by members of the Nakazato Kōsha, part of the Maruka Kōbu Shū Tanashi Group. It is primarily held to pray for protection from fire and good health. During the festival, participants offer prayers at the summit of the Fujizuka and then light a large torch at the foot of the hill.After a purification ritual using the large torch, once the flames have died down, participants climb back to the summit, and the festival concludes. The ashes from the large torch are said to offer protection against fire and warding off evil spirits from crops. […]
The Fujizuka in Nakazato
Mount Fuji has long been revered as a sacred mountain, and the practice of making pilgrimages to climb it became particularly popular during the mid-Edo period. However, since actually climbing Mount Fuji was both financially burdensome and dangerous, Fujizuka (mounds modeled after Mount Fuji) were built in various locations for those who could not make the journey.The Fujizuka in Nakazato was built in Bunsei 8 (1825) by members of the Nakazato Kōsha, a group affiliated with the Maruka Kōbu Shū Tanashi-gumi, on the edge of a terrace along the right bank of the Yanagase River. The current Fujizuka stands about 9 meters higher than the surrounding area.Passing through the torii […]
Site of the Former Kiyose Hospital
The history of tuberculosis treatment in Kiyose began with the opening of the “Tokyo Prefectural Kiyose Hospital” in Showa 6. This marked the beginning of the establishment of more than a dozen sanatoriums in the surrounding area, and Kiyose became known nationwide as a leading center for tuberculosis treatment. The site of the former Kiyose Hospital, along with the “Gaikisha Memorial Hall”—a city-designated tangible cultural property—was designated as a city historic site in Heisei 28 as a testament to the history of tuberculosis treatment, which was once a widespread disease in Japan. Today, a monument inscribed with the words “Kiyose Hospital Once Stood Here,” erected in a corner of Central […]
Natural Monument: Zelkova Tree (Hachiman Shrine)
The Musashino region is home to many large zelkova trees. These trees are of excellent quality, characterized by trunks that are slender and straight relative to their height, and a high branch line. Although the top was snapped off by a lightning strike, the tree is still 26 meters tall. Its estimated age is 350 years. Location 515 Shimosuku 2-chome, Kiyose City, Tokyo
Natural Monument: Japanese Cedar (Hie Shrine)
In Musashino, large cedar trees typically grow on hills or in mountainous areas, but this tree is a rare, large cedar that has taken root on a plateau. Estimated to be 400 years old, with a height of 21 meters. Designated on April 6, Showa 54. Location 2-616 Nakaseido, Kiyose City, Tokyo Phone 042-493-5211
Shimoyado Hayashi (Hachiman Shrine)
"Shimoyado Bayashi" is a festival music tradition in the Kanda style performed annually at Shimoyado Hachiman Shrine on April 23 (Spring Festival) and September 14 and 15 (Fall Festival).It is performed as an offering to pray for a bountiful harvest and good health.” The performance features the okan (long-bodied drum), tsuke (small drum), flute, gong, and clappers, accompanied by dances such as the Okame, Hyottoko, lion, celestial fox, and Gedo. It is said that the festival music was learned in the early Meiji period from a candy seller known as “Ame-Kisa,” who had come from Asakusa. Ame-Kisa, whose real name was “Kisaburō,” is said to have mastered the entire repertoire […]
Kiyoto Lion Dance (Hie Shrine)
It is said that the Kiyoto Lion Dance originated when a lion head was passed down to the Kiyoto Gashuku community, and it later became a festival in Naka-Kiyoto to pray for a bountiful harvest and ward off misfortune. It is held every year on the Sunday around July 15 at Hie Shrine. This “dance” begins with a procession that departs from the center of Nakaseito and heads along the Shiki Kaido toward Hie Shrine. The Mountain God leads the procession, dancing as he goes, while the Female Lion, Medium Lion, and Large Lion parade along to the sound of flutes and drumbeats, building anticipation for the dance to follow.In […]
Uchiori and Related Materials (Local History Museum) Designated on February 10, Reiwa 5
Uchi-ori is clothing woven by women at farms in Kiyose for their own use. In Heisei 29, 469 items were designated as “Kiyose No Uchiori,” a Nationally Designated Important Tangible Folk Cultural Property. "Uchiori and Related Materials" is a general term for materials related to "Kiyose no Uchiori," a nationally designated Important Tangible Folk Cultural Property. The collection includes "Kiyose Uchiori" textiles donated since their designation as cultural properties, as well as related purchased textiles, sericulture tools, and weaving tools. In February of Reiwa 5, these 531 items were designated as Tangible Folk Cultural Properties of the city under the name “Uchi-ori and Related Materials.” Location 2-6-41 Kamiseido, Kiyose City, […]