The hot spring town of Kinosaki Onsen in northern Hyogo Prefecture has a history that reaches back many centuries.
According to local legend a hot spring sprang forth in 717 A.D. after the priest Dochi-Shonin prayed here for one thousand consecutive days. The buddhist temple Onsenji was built to honor the priest and on April 23rd and 24th a festival is still held to commemorate his miraculous feat.
Beautifully located along the Otani River, it is lined with a large number of community bathhouses. Especially famous are Satono-yu, Ichino-yu, Jizo-yu and Kono-yu. Kono-yu’s name originates from another famous local legend about a stork that used a spring in this location to heal its wounds. Its name actually means stork’s hot spring.
Kinosaki became a household word in Japan thanks to the novel _Kinosaki ni te (At Kinosaki) by Japanese novelist Naoya Shiga.
Published
Updated
Reader Supported
Old Photos of Japan aims to be your personal museum for Japan's visual heritage and to bring the experiences of everyday life in old Japan to you.
To enhance our understanding of Japanese culture and society I track down, acquire, archive, and research images of everyday life, and give them context.
I share what I have found for free on this site, without ads or selling your data.
Your support helps me to continue doing so, and ensures that this exceptional visual heritage will not be lost and forgotten.
Thank you,
Kjeld Duits
Reference for Citations
Duits, Kjeld (). Kinosaki 1920s: Kinosaki, OLD PHOTOS of JAPAN. Retrieved on January 12, 2025 (GMT) from https://www.oldphotosjapan.com/photos/147/kinosaki
There are currently no comments on this article.