Bookmarks from Uji
Bookmarks featuring photographs of historical landmarks in Uji, not far from Kyoto, Japan’s capital during the Heian period (794–1185): the Uji Kotosaka stone gate (Uji Kotosaka sekimon 宇治琴坂石門) and the fan-shaped lawn (Uji ōgi no shiba 宇治扇の芝). The place name is written in Japanese next to each black and white photo. The stone gate at the foot of the Kotosaka slope is one of the entrances to the Buddhist Kōshōji 興聖寺 temple, built in 1233. The fan-shaped lawn is located near the Hōōdō 鳳凰堂, an elegant phoenix-shaped architecture from the Heian period. In 1180, at the beginning of the conflict between the Taira and Minamoto clans, the warrior Minamoto no Yorimasa (1104–1180) fled from his enemies, but knowing that he would soon be captured by Taira no Tomonori, preferred to commit an honourable suicide on the site of this lawn. In the photo we can see the Kamniti Monument dedicated to the soldier Yorimasa. (CSB)
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