Nihonbashi (日本橋) (genre )
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Biography:
Michael Fredholm von Essen wrote on pages 238-242 in The Shogun's Soldiers Volume 1: The Daily Life of Samurai and Soldiers in Edo Period Japan, 1603-1721: "After thus circling the castle, we find ourselves near Nihonbashi (‘Japan Bridge’). With the exception of Edo Castle, the most famous place in the city was arguably the great bridge at Nihonbashi, or Nipponbashi as the name seems to have been commonly pronounced in the Edo period. This bridge rebuilt a dozen times or more as a result of fires and wear and tear, was about 77 m long and 9 m wide ..."
"The bridge was appropriately named. From the time of its construction in 1604, it was the common centre from which the roads were measured in Japan."
"The south bank of the river spanned by the bridge soon developed into centre for goods shipped to Edo. It was therefore natural that the Gokaidō (the five major roads to the provinces) radiated from this area of brisk commerce..." [This is not unlike the Western saying "All roads lead to Rome."]
"Nihonbashi was the true centre of Shitamachi (downtown Edo) and Nihonbashi therefore the commercial centre of the city... In the eighteenth century, 11 out of 20 famous commercial firms were situated around Nihonbashi. The area was, for instance, the site of the two great silk shops, Shirokiya of Tomizawachō (on the site until recently occupied by the Tōkyū department store) and Echigoya (now Mitsukoshi), established a few years later. It is not surprising that many of the oldest department stores, trading houses, and banks were founded here. Many of them still remain."
"Other old Nihonbashi shops that survived into the present include Kamaya, established in 1659, selling moxa; Yamamotoyama, established in 1690, selling tea from Uji and nori (dried seaweed), formerly a specialty of Edo; Ninben, specialising in dried bonito flakes (katsuobushi), established in 1699 or, in this form, in 1704; Saruya, established in 1704, selling toothpicks; Edoya, established in 1718, selling brushes; Kiya, established in 1792 as a lacquer shop but nowadays selling knives and scissors; Yamamoto Noriten, founded in 1849, also selling nori; and Yanagiya, selling cosmetics, face powder, rouge, and scented hair oils, established as early as in 1615 by a Chinese known best by the Japanised form of his name, Ro Ikkan, one of whose ancestors had acquired the right to the two swords and a family name."
"All goods were not of domestic origin. Near Kyóbashi bridge towards the south, there were, for instance, a few shops called Tōbutsuya (‘vendors of products from China), selling imported goods (from China and elsewhere)."
"Nihonbashi was also the site of the central fish market, located right beside the bridge itself on the northern bank of the waterway... This market consisted of a large number of huts and stalls in which the fishmongers displayed their fish. The fish market was first established in 1590 fish market by Mori Magoemon (1569-1672), son of a fisherman from Ōsaka, together with 30 others. The shogunate soon imposed a regular tax in the form of fresh fish for Edo Castle. Every morning an official arrived with some 15 assistants, who quickly confiscated every fish that looked suitable for the shogunal tables. Payment was as usual in Edo only made twice a year, and fixed at prices much lower than the market value. The fishmongers devised numerous ploys to hide choice fish from the official delegation. A common trick was to hide the fish in the latrine...."
"Not far from Nihonbashi was another bridge, Edobashi. After the disastrous fire of 1657 a broad street was cleared around this bridge, As elsewhere, this resulted in the immediate build-up of entertainment facilities including tea houses, a small theatre (yose), and no less than five Separate miniature archery ranges, fronting for prostitution. On the last day of the year, Edobashi was the scene for a street market where performers of auspicious and comic dialogues known as manzai came to select a junior partner/comic sidekick for the coming year’s tour. This market was later moved to Nihonbashi."