From the late prehistoric Jōmon culture in Japan, which extends approximately from 14,000 to 400 BCE, numerous small humanoid figurines have been found, known as dogū (literally, clay figure). They have been discovered throughout the country except in Okinawa Prefecture, and they all share a similar style, ranging in size from 10 to 30 centimeters, […]
Japan
Posted inGeography
The Colossal Underground Tunnels Shielding Tokyo from Floods at 164 Feet Deep
In a country like Japan, where torrential rains and typhoons are recurring phenomena, water management becomes a vital necessity. In response to the persistent flooding problems in the Tokyo metropolitan area, the Japanese government undertook the construction of one of the world’s most impressive hydraulic infrastructures: the Metropolitan Area Outer Underground Discharge Channel (MAOUDC), known […]
Posted inAge of Exploration
The Story of the Keichō Embassy: The Japanese Who Traveled to Spain and Rome in the 17th Century
If I told you that today we are going to talk about a 17th-century figure named Felipe Francisco de Fachicura, you would probably think of a military officer, a writer, or perhaps a politician from the Spain of Philip III. However, that is not the case—or at least, not exactly—because that was the name given […]
Posted inAge of Exploration
The Great Fire That Destroyed 500 Palaces, 350 Temples, and Almost the Entire Capital of Japan in 1657, Giving Rise to the Yakuza
If we talk about the number of fatalities and the degree of destruction, three major disasters stand out in Japan. Two are well known: the Great Kantō Earthquake of 1923, which reached 8.3 on the Richter scale and claimed the lives of about one hundred and fifty thousand people, and Operation Meetinghouse of 1945, an […]
Posted inModern Era
Shiroyama, the Epic Battle That Marked the End of the Samurai
Some time ago, we published an article titled Saigō Takamori, the True Story of the Last Samurai, recounting the story of this singular figure, ending with a brief narration of his death. He perished in the Battle of Shiroyama, a fight that marked the end of the so-called Satsuma Rebellion. This occurred amidst the turbulent, […]
Posted inSecond World War
Operation K: The Failed Second Japanese Aerial Attack on Pearl Harbor with Seaplanes, Three Months After the Initial Strike
It is not widely known due to the limited scale of the action and its poor results, but three months after their devastating attack on Pearl Harbor, the Japanese carried out a second raid. The aim was to force the U.S. fleet to venture into open waters and engage in a decisive battle, taking advantage […]
Posted inAge of Exploration
Horo, the Inflatable Cloak that Protected Samurai from Behind
If there is one type of historical warrior that has reached mythical dimensions, it is the Japanese one. The figure of the samurai has been excessively mythologized, probably due to cinema, to the point of acquiring an aura of invincibility that doesn’t quite match reality. Samurai were human, and as such, they accomplished great deeds… […]
Posted inModern Era
The Curious Connection Between Edison and a Japanese Shrine Through Bamboo
In 1964, Madeleine Edison Sloane traveled to Japan and visited Iwashimizu Hachimangu, a Shinto shrine located in Kyoto Prefecture near the city of Yawata. The purpose of her visit was not tourism but rather to personally see a memorial within its walls and take part in one of the two festivals held there in memory […]
Posted inStone Age Archaeology
DNA Analysis Reveals the Origin of the Japanese
A team of researchers has made an important step in understanding the origins of modern Japanese people. Scientists were able to extract DNA from a Yayoi-era skeleton found at the famous archaeological site of Doigahama in Yamaguchi Prefecture, Japan, and conduct a complete analysis of its genome. This study has revealed that the current Japanese […]
Posted inHistory
The oldest reigning dynasty in the world is the Imperial House of Japan, descended from a shaman queen
If we were to ask what is the world’s oldest active monarchy, most readers would probably say the British without giving it much thought. That would be an incorrect answer. We need to shift the focus to the Far East because that is where Japan is, whose kōshitsu, or Imperial House, has been at the […]
