It was created as a garden in the villa of the 1st lord of the Asano Domain in Hiroshima, Asano Naga’akira, in 1620. Ueda Soko, who was a principal retainer and a famous tea master, landscaped this garden. The name, Shukkei-en (a garden with shrank scenery), was derived from the fact that the garden represents many famous scenaries in reduced sizes. It is also said that this garden imitates the West Lake, a famous scenic spot in China.
cultural property : historic sites and places of scenic beauty as natural monuments
type : places of scenic beauty
2-11 Kaminoborichō, Naka-ku, Hiroshima-shi, Hiroshima-ken 730-0014
Tel：082-221-3620
Home page : shukkeien.jp
It was created as a garden in the villa of the 1st lord of the Asano Domain in Hiroshima, Asano Nagaakira, in 1620. Ueda Soko, who was a principal retainer and a famous tea master, landscaped this garden. There is a pond called Takuei-chi in the center of the garden and there are more than 10 islands of various sizes. A Tsukiyama, valley, tea room, bridge and arbor are beautifully arranged and visitors can stroll along the paths around the garden. A Sukiya style tea room, called Seifu-kan, is in the center of the garden and its western side is in a style of Shoin-zukuri. There is a window called Kato-mado in the east side of the tea room and a bridge called Koko-kyo in the middle of the pond can be seen through the window.
The name, Shukkei-en (a garden with shrank scenery), was derived from the fact that the garden represents many famous sceneries in reduced sizes. It is also said that this garden imitates the West Lake, a famous scenic spot in China.
The garden suffered devastating damage from the atomic bomb in 1945, but after that it was restored over a 30-years time span and it is now a place of recreation and relaxation for many people from inside and outside Japan.