Narai-juku

Narai-juku was one of the post towns on the Nakasendo highway ruled by the Edo
Shogunate. It was situated midway between Kyoto and Edo (now called Tokyo). As
the buildings have been kept very much the same since the Edo period, it wasdesignated as a Cultural Asset in 1978 and is maintained by the government grantsystem.
The conservation area is about 200m wide and 1 km long north to south, which
consists of Kanmachi (uptown), Nakamachi (midtown) and Shimomachi(downtown). You can see that the buildings in Narai-juku have overhanging second
floors and eaves. It is said that the structure was made to liven up the town and now
makes it unique among the post towns. The once wooden rooftops have been
replaced with more weather resistant steel sheets.
In the Edo period, Narai-juku flourished by providing travelers accommodation andtransport facilities. It was once called “Narai of a Thousand Houses.” At the time,
resting in Narai-juku was especially refreshing for travelers crossing the highest
pass on the Nakasendo highway, Torii Pass, which is to the south of Narai.Narai-juku Attractions

Two Hundred Jizos (Α on map)

Virgin Mary Jizo (Β on map)

Water Fountains ( ※ on map)

Some two hundred stone Buddhist
images stand in an orderly line.
Deceased travelers with no one to tend
their graves were brought together inthis place. Their peaceful and rich
expressions, washed by the wind andsnow of many years, calm our minds.

A statue of a headless Virgin Marytaking care of a child is enshrined in thegraveyard of Taiho-ji. However, it hasborrowed the name and figure of Jizo.
The sad histories of hidden Christians
are deeply etched in the image.

These were water sources for travelers
passing through Narai-juku. They werealso important water supplies for Narai
villagers. Though only six are left,these water fountains are still incommon use nowadays.

The Nakamura House (Χ on map)

Shizume Jinja (Δ on map)

Kiso Ohashi (Ε on map)

This was the residence of a wealthy comb
wholesaler, Rihei Nakamura, back in theTemp period (1830-1844). It would still berecognizable to travelers back then becauseof how well it has been preserved. The
house and garden are open to the public.

The god of this shrine was invited torelieve a plague that spread throughout
Narai-juku; shizume in English means
to relieve. Since it is located at theentrance of Torii Pass, travelers often
pray for safe journeys there. An annual
festival is held on August 11th and 12thof each year.

A large bridge in the shape of aJapanese drum crosses Narai River. It
is considered to be one of a few large
bridges without bridge support inJapan. Kiso Ohashi was built entirely
with hinoki cypress that was more than
300 years old. Evening light-up fromApril to early November.

Hirasawa _Many woodworking and lacquerware craftsmen once lived in Kamimachi (uptown) andShimomachi (downtown). However, due to the large number of travelers in the area, they
moved north to Hirasawa where they could concentrate on their work. Since Hirasawa hasappropriate weather conditions and an abundance of forest resources for making
lacquerware, it quickly became the home for Kiso lacquerware.

Winning Medals of the Nagano Winter Olympics in 1998
These were finished with the painstaking skills of Kiso’s
artisans. They are now in a standing exhibition at the Kiso
Technical Art Museum for Living.