/Before the period of the Tokugawa ruling, capital cities such as Kyoto and Edo underwear dramatic changes, which many of them were affected by Oda Nobunaga and Tomotomi Hideyoshi. During the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, Kyoto experienced constant transformation during years of civil unrest and the ÅŒnin War which lasted for a hundred years. When stability was reached under Hideyoshi's rule, urban alterations could be seen in the construction of monument buildings, physical changes to the city's structures, and reorganizations of blocks and neighborhoods. Up until the Tokugawa reign, many of Hideyoshi's contributions to these architectural formation remained. For example, the division of the Upper and Lower capitals were still depicted in most of the Kyoto screens during the Edo period.
In Matthew McKelway's article, he extensively examined the Shokoji and Yamaoka screens which survived as the oldest Edo-period rakuchu rakugai zu. On the Shokoji screens, mansions of court artisans were located around the Hideyoshi's palace, creating layers of protection surrounding the palace. People wearing ceremonial court attire walking around identify this area as the aristocratic quarter. Temples such as Seiganji and Seishin'in could be seen near the Kamo River. In the south, blocks of houses which belong to the bourgeois elite (machishu), increasingly prosperous because of the stability from the Tokugawa unification. The row of houses' back lot, which in the Sanjo screens were mostly empty, are filled with storehouses in the Shokoji screens, reflecting prosperity of the machishu. The parade of the Gion Festival which passes through the central area of the machishu district shows that the community is enjoying a peaceful and stable era under the rule of Hideyoshi.
The Daibutsuden of Hokoji attracts the attention as it stands out as a prominent monument in the southeast. Hokoji was originally built as an attempt to outdo Todaiji. McKelway pointed out that two things were noticeably absent from the Shokoji screens: the Ear Mound (mimizuka), which was a monument that marked the burial of the ears of defeated Korean soldiers; another object was the Hokoji belfry. [1] The absence of these objects might represent a hint of deference to the Tokugawa.
However, despite the inclusion of many Hideyoshi's monuments and architecture in the Shokoji screens, the most dominant monument belonged to Togukawa Ieyasu's Nijo castle. To mark the victory of the Battle of Sekigahara in 1600, Ieyasu built the Nijo castle, establishing a military presence in the center of Kyoto. The establishment of the Nijo castle immediately replaced the Jurakutei's status, underlying the notion of blurring the memories of the previous regime. The Noji castle is represented as significantly grand and occupying a broad space in the Shokoji, Yamaoka, and other early seventeenth century Kyoto screens.
The Yamaoka screen was created in the early Edo period, just as the Tokugawa reign had begun. Many of the major buildings such as the Noji castle, Kuramadera, and Daitokuji could be seen, situating in the same locations as the Shokoji screens. One significant culture change was depicted in the Yamaoka screen which is absented from the Shokoji screens: the representation of Kabuki performance near the Kitano Shrine. Kabuki a highly stylized Japanese drama which involves stylized performances and elaborate make-up worn by the performers. The performance, which became a dominant Japanese culture during the Edo-period, involves dramatic acting, singing, and dancing. The Kabuki scene in the Yamaoka screen portrays the earliest form of Kabuki performance.
The outstanding Nijo castle remained as the defining architectural structure in the Yamaoka screen. On its left is the temple Nishi Honganji; to the right is the mansion of the Kyoto administrator. Although both the Shokoji and Yamaoka screens consist of the majestic Nijo castle, with officials parading near the castle, the two screens depict difference events going on. McKelway had identified the parade in Yamaoka to be the visit by Hidetada to the Emperor, which could be proved by matching historical writings with similar event that occurs in the screen. [2] This splendid event signified a peaceful and uninterrupted dynastic succession from Ieyasu to Hidetada.
Besides ancient screens, maps also existed to show the general structure of the capitals. Initially, these maps were not aids to travel; they were simply portraits of the grand capitals with only a few significant monuments that could be identified. They were to show the architectural development of the capitals. Although some maps, like the screens, also applied the bird's eyes view, the later maps were mostly drawn from the perspective of vertically top view. Blocks and main streets could be viewed clearly. The daimyo's castle, temples, and some politically important mansions such as the homes of the vassals were the main icons that were drawn out. Family emblems of important figures were sometimes drawn along with the names of the figures. When the shogunate was relocated from Kyoto to Edo, maps became even more elaborated; names of each stores or homes were included, with blocks of homes well-aligned accordingly. Different types of stores could be color-coded.
From a map of Echizen province in 1606 (seen in Berry's article on page 89), early cartographers were mainly concerned with coastal structures and land development. Waterways and roads were also drawn to make distinctions of lands; fields and mountains were roughly drafted. The lack of indications of buildings other than the daimyo's castle and temples shows that the early Tokugawa period were preparing for a major transition since the handover of the power from Hideyoshi. Berry has pointed out a very significant depiction of the daimyo's power that could be seen from this simple map, "…flowing inward from the village to the castle is the wealth signified by yields; flowing outward from the castle to the village is the authority of the lord assigned those resources." [3] The wealth of the daimyo was measured by the resources he obtained, and in return the daimyo exercised his power outwardly to the resources surrounding him.
In the late seventeenth century, the publishers revised the national map of Japan by adding explicitly more details. The Map of the Sea, Mountains, and Lands of Japan (seen in Berry's article on page 99) displays the classical order of provinces with labels identifying its name and productivity. Military order of castle towns are also represented with clear label of names and information regarding the daimyo's domain. Lastly, famous places are illustrated, placing emphasis on sites of name and fame. The printing of all provinces in one unified map displays the expanding power of hegemonic ruling under the Tokugawa shogunate.
In fact, different types of maps do divulge different aims. Screens and maps which employed the bird's eye view aim to portray the social and economical order of the community, since both fields required the illustrations of detailed interactions among people. The parades in the Shojoki and Tamaoka screens and the Kabuki scenes in the Tamaoka screen show the flourishing of traditions and cultural art. Detailed maps with grid and blocks are usually used for political means such as the positioning and building of important political architectures. Such maps display the location of different districts in provinces and allow officials to carry out policy and reforms in much easier ways. For example, Hideyoshi added and repaired streets to restore the classical grid so that maps were more easily and clearly drawn.
In conclusion, the Edo and Kyoto screens signify the idealized social order and the welcoming of a new era with peace and order. After so many years of turbulence, Kyoto could finally enjoy its prosperous time under the ruling of Hideyoshi and the Tokugawa shoguns. People in the cities celebrated the revival of previously abandoned practices and fostered the creation of new Japanese culture such as Kabuki. The joyful atmosphere suggested that the appreciation of the new urban life in the capital had brought long-term prosperity to the Tokugawa reign. The screens also depict the daily life of the people in great detail as different social groups (such as samurais and merchants) are self-evident. The creation of legislation of status groups could be seen, showing that people belonged to recognizable order. This proves that the Tokugawa rulers had obtained rather well-structured legal and social systems where people followed orders and rules accordingly. This is perhaps why the Edo-period was said to be the most stabilized and prosperous era throughout the Japanese history.
