Rural Landscape of Tashibu-no-sho Osaki: A Medieval Estate in Living Fields
The Rural Landscape of Tashibu-no-sho Osaki (田染荘小崎の農村景観) is a farming landscape covering Tashibu Osaki and part of Tashibu Manaka in Bungotakada City, Oita Prefecture, and in 2010 was selected as an Important Cultural Landscape.
Tashibu-no-sho was one of the core estates of Usa Jingu shrine. Bungotakada City says its curving rice paddies, weirs built on boulders and bedrock, house sites named in old documents and simple shrines preserve patterns of land use unchanged since the Middle Ages.
In October 2016 the surrounding satoyama hills were added, increasing the selected area by 520.8 hectares to 612.8 hectares and covering the whole landscape plan area.
Why It Was Selected
Bungotakada City says the landscape was valued for farming and for settlement: the first selection in 2010 took in paddy areas of varied curves and the Daison hamlet, which is documented in Kamakura-period records.
The added hills hold irrigation ponds and weirs that feed the paddies, together with shrines and small halls, and were valued for a satoyama way of life maintained by traditional methods and slowly evolving.
Sawtooth oak woods and log beds for shiitake growing reuse former paddies and help the hills hold water for the fields below, a system also recognised as a Globally Important Agricultural Heritage System.
What to Look For
Bungotakada City begins its suggested route with the view from Yuhi Iwaya, where curving paddies, scattered hamlets and the wooded hills behind fit into one picture.
Walking between the hamlets, you can trace how water passes from paddy to paddy, and where springs and weirs lie.
Visiting the Rural Landscape of Tashibu-no-sho Osaki
This is a lived-in farming area, so stay on the roads and keep out of fields and private land. There are no fees or set hours.
According to Bungotakada City, the Hotaru no Yakata facility (2596 Tashibu Osaki) has parking for about 15 vehicles, including coaches.
- 📍 Plan Your Visit to Oita
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Q&A
- What is the Rural Landscape of Tashibu-no-sho Osaki?
- A farming landscape in Bungotakada, Oita, that preserves the land use of the medieval Tashibu estate, selected as an Important Cultural Landscape in 2010.
- What was Tashibu-no-sho?
- One of the core estates of Usa Jingu shrine.
- How large is the selected area?
- After the 2016 addition, 612.8 hectares in total.
- What was valued?
- Curving paddies, a hamlet documented since the Kamakura period, irrigation ponds and weirs, and the satoyama way of life.
- Is there parking?
- Yes, about 15 spaces at Hotaru no Yakata.
Basic Information
| Name | Rural Landscape of Tashibu-no-sho Osaki (田染荘小崎の農村景観) |
|---|---|
| Location | Tashibu Osaki and Tashibu Manaka, Bungotakada City, Oita Prefecture |
| Designation | Important Cultural Landscape |
| Year Designated | Selected 2010/8/5 (Heisei 22); extended in 2016 |
| Quantity | 1 site |
| Dimensions | Selected area 612.8 hectares |
| Owner | Not listed in the Agency for Cultural Affairs database |
| Public Access | Lived-in farming area; view from the roads |
References
- Agency for Cultural Affairs Database: Tashibu-no-sho Osaki (Japanese)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/412/00003695
- Cultural Heritage Online: Tashibu-no-sho Osaki (Japanese)
- https://online.bunka.go.jp/heritages/detail/199592
- Bungotakada City: Satoyama area added (Japanese)
- https://www.city.bungotakada.oita.jp/site/bunkazai/2136.html
- Bungotakada City Tashibu-no-sho site (Japanese)
- https://tashibunoshou.com/cultural_properties/detail/1
Last verified: 2026.09.27