I found a discount ticket at the Yakage Roadside Station, so I went to see it.
The old street side was the main inn, and at the back was the sake brewery.
At the main inn, we were able to see the old lord's rooms.
The sake brewery area has been remodeled into a museum, with various explanatory panels and exhibits such as Satsuma portable bathtubs.
At the very back there was a shrine-like structure with a painting of Yoshitsune and Benkei?
As I was leaving, the attendant explained to me about the maids' quarters on the second floor. The exit door at the bottom of the old staircase can only be opened from the outside, and I wonder what they would do in case of a fire? It was a pretty scary story.
There was a volunteer guide inside the mansion who explained things at just the right distance, giving me a completely different and more moving experience than if I had seen it alone.
The building was in excellent condition, and I could feel the local pride from the people at the reception desk.
As I was walking down the main street, I noticed an impressive building and decided to go inside.
A veteran and engaging guide gave me a fun and thorough explanation, allowing me to learn many things.
I highly recommend asking for a guide at the reception desk; it will definitely be a more enjoyable and informative experience.
Thanks to them, I have wonderful memories of Yakage.
This is the former Ishii family residence, the Yakage Honjin (main inn).
This is a long text, but please read it if you are interested.
The Ishii family possesses many historical documents related to transportation in the early modern period, and among them is a record of Tenshoin Atsuhime's stay at the Yakage Honjin on her journey from Satsuma to marry Tokugawa Iesada, the 13th Shogun. It appears she stayed there on September 17th, and the "Shukukata Gokyu Hakudome" (a record of the inn's stay) for September 1853 (Kaei 6) states, "The daughter of the Lieutenant General, Princess of Satsuma, stayed overnight, and received three silver coins." It also lists the 52 people who stayed at the inn, including maids and samurai guards, and details of their meals. Records of other inns around the Honjin also mention "Princess of Satsuma stayed overnight" for the same month, and it is recorded that over 200 retainers stayed at 33 different inns. Currently, NHK-BS is re-broadcasting "Atsuhime," so I visited with great interest, as it was a timely opportunity. In the drama, Atsuhime travels from Satsuma by ship across the Seto Inland Sea, and there is no depiction of her passing through Yakage, which is inland. When I asked the guide about this, they explained that in Tomiko Miyao's novel "Tenshoin Atsuhime," which served as the basis for the historical drama, Atsuhime and her entourage departed from near Toi Cape in Miyazaki Prefecture, passed through Hososhima Port in the same prefecture and Shimonoseki in Yamaguchi Prefecture, and arrived in Osaka via the Seto Inland Sea. While the drama adopted the "sea route theory," albeit with some changes to the route, in reality, during this period, sea routes were tense due to the arrival of the Black Ships, and land routes were the norm. NHK also responded to a reader's question by stating, "It seems that in reality, it was a land route."
The following is from their website:
The Ishii family served as the head innkeepers of Yakage-juku for generations during the Edo period, and their house is now designated as a National Important Cultural Property.
The honjin (main inn) served as lodging and resting places for daimyo (feudal lords), court nobles, and shogunate officials traveling between Edo and their home provinces for the sankin-kotai (alternate attendance) system. Records show that not only people, but also elephants appearing before the shogun sometimes stopped there on their journey from Nagasaki to Edo.
The existing Ishii family buildings are primarily from the mid-to-late Edo period and have been gradually renovated to their present state. The approximately 1,000 tsubo (approximately 3,200 square meters) estate includes facilities for welcoming guests, such as a tatami room with an upper-level chamber and an onarimon (gate), as well as the family's living quarters and the main house, inner storehouse, sake storehouse, and west storehouse. In total, more than a dozen buildings stand, preserving the estate's original appearance to this day.
