46 Shono Sudden Shower

Описание: https://axera.org/to53/

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Ukiyoe of the Fifty-three Stages of the Tokaido drawn by Hiroshige Utagawa, I researched the view from where it was seen and actually went there. The route to the places depicted together with explanations of the history and topography of the area are also included in the book.

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Fifty-three Stages of the Tokaido
Shono
Sudden Shower
Hoeido edition, painting by Utagawa Hiroshige
The Art Institute of Chicago Museum Collection

This scene portrays the moment when travelers along a mountain road are suddenly caught in a summer downpour and begin hurriedly running up a steep slope.
Amid the fierce rain and wind, the movements of the travelers are depicted with remarkable liveliness.

First, let us once again take a look at the somewhat unfortunate geographical position of Shono-juku using a wide-area satellite image.
On the right side, many travelers coming from Edo would leave the Tokaido at Oiwake, beyond Yokkaichi, and continue along the Ise Kaido, shown here in cream.
Meanwhile, travelers from Osaka and Kyoto also joined the route at Seki via the Tokaido or the Yamato Kaido, and from there proceeded toward the Ise pilgrimage along the Ise Betsu Kaido.

The pilgrimage to Ise sparked a great travel boom during the Edo period.
These pilgrims played a major role in supporting the development of the Tokaido.

However, Shono-juku, together with its neighboring Ishiyakushi and Kameyama-juku, stood along a comparatively quiet stretch of the Tokaido and was largely left out of these benefits.
For that reason, Shono-juku is said to have struggled greatly to maintain its relay station operations, much like Ishiyakushi-juku.

Here, please take a look at a map showing both Ishiyakushi-juku and Shono-juku.
After leaving Ishiyakushi-juku, the Tokaido continues for about 2.9 kilometers.
Measured from Ishiyakushi Temple, it is only a little over two kilometers to reach Shono-juku.
Moreover, about 1.5 kilometers before that point lies the location depicted in this print, “Sudden Shower.”Shono-juku was established in 1624.
Among the relay stations along the Tokaido, it was one of the latest to be created.The distance between it and Ishiyakushi-juku is also the second shortest interval between relay stetions on the entire Tokaido.

After leaving the town of Ishiyakushi, the Tokaido soon crosses the Gamagawa River.Beyond the bridge stands the Ishiyakushi ichirizuka milestone mound, and from there the road becomes a narrow route that almost resembles a path between rice fields.
Furthermore, from around the point where it crosses the Kansai Main Line, the old Tokaido no longer survives today as a roadway.

This is because, when the four-lane National Route 25 was later constructed, many of the original routes were altered or replaced.
Today, by turning right at the Kasadocho intersection on National Route 25 and proceeding along the side road, you can approach the place depicted by Hiroshige in “Sudden Shower.”

Continuing along the highway and turning right at the next traffic signal will bring you to the eastern entrance of Shono-juku.
However, part of the old Tokaido that once ran parallel to National Route 25 is now occupied by the grounds of a concrete factory.

Here, let us enlarge the map of this area a little.

Because both the roads and the course of the river in this region have changed significantly, we will also overlay another historical source.
This is an aerial photograph taken in May 1946 by the American forces stationed in Japan after the Second World War.

Since the present National Route 25 had not yet been built at that time, the original terrain is much easier to understand.
Here, the route of the Tokaido and the location of Shono-juku have been overlaid, and the place believed to represent Hiroshige’s viewpoint is indicated with an orange gradient.