Tōkaidō

Tōkaidō

▪ ancient road, Japan
(Japanese:“Eastern Sea Road”),

      historic road that connected Ōsaka and Kyōto with Edo (now Tokyo) in Japan. The Tōkaidō was 303 miles (488 km) long and ran mostly along the Pacific (i.e., southern) coast of the island of Honshu. From ancient times the road was the chief route from the capital city of Kyōto eastward to central Honshu. The Tōkaidō became even more important during the Tokugawa (Edo) period (1603–1867), since it connected Edo, the capital city of the Tokugawa shogunate, with western Honshu.

      Along the Tōkaidō were 53 post-station towns whose inns and vendors provided lodging, refreshment, and gifts for the road's travelers. The road was well known for its picturesque views, which were recorded by the artist Hiroshige in a series of woodblock prints entitled “Fifty-three Stations of the Tßkaidß” (1832). During the Tokugawa period, the Tōkaidō is recorded as having a smooth, well-kept roadbed that averaged 18 feet (5.5 m) in width. This roadbed consisted of a deep layer of crushed gravel overlaid with sand and was paved with stone on mountain slopes. Wheeled vehicles were rare on the Tōkaidō, which was used chiefly by pedestrians, packhorses, and palanquins carried by bearers. The route of the Tōkaidō is now followed by a national highway and two important rail lines, one being a line of the high-speed Shinkansen.

* * *


Universalium. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать курсовую

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Tokaido — Tōkaidō Le Pont Nihonbashi à l aube par Hiroshige, le célèbre illustrateur de la route de Tōkaidō Tōkaidō (東海道 …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Tôkaidô — Tōkaidō Le Pont Nihonbashi à l aube par Hiroshige, le célèbre illustrateur de la route de Tōkaidō Tōkaidō (東海道 …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Tōkaidō — (東海道) (literally, East Sea Route) may refer to: *Tōkaidō (region), an ancient country subdivision of Japan *Tōkaidō (road), one of the Five Routes of Japan during the Edo period **Route 1 (Japan), a major national highway in Japan that traces old …   Wikipedia

  • Tōkaidō — (東海道, Tōkaidō? lit. «Ruta del Mar del Este») puede referirse a: Tōkaidō (región). Una antigua subdivisión de Japón. Tōkaidō (camino). Una de las principales cinco rutas en Japón durante el periodo Edo. Tōkaidō Shinkansen. Una línea de tr …   Wikipedia Español

  • Tokaido — (»östliche Heerstraße«), die Straße von Tokio nach Kioto am Südufer der Hauptinsel Japans …   Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon

  • Tōkaidō —   [»Ostmeergau«], ursprünglich einer der sieben Gaue (»dō«) der altjapanischen Territorialverwaltung, im engeren Sinn seit dem 17. Jahrhundert die 514 km lange Straße von Tokio über Nagoya nach Kyōto, früher durch 53 Übernachtungs und Rastplätze… …   Universal-Lexikon

  • Tōkaidō — Le Pont Nihonbashi à l aube par Hiroshige, le célèbre illustrateur de la route de Tōkaidō Le Tōkaidō (東海道, Tōka …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Tokaido — Der Tōkaidō (jap. 東海道, dt. „östlicher Seeweg“) war eine der wichtigsten Handelsstraßen (Kaidō) des alten Japan und verband Edo (das heutige Tokio) mit Kyōto. Inhaltsverzeichnis 1 Der historische Tōkaidō 1.1 Die 53 klassischen Stationen des… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Tōkaidō — Der Tōkaidō (jap. 東海道, dt. „östlicher Seeweg“) war eine der wichtigsten Handelsstraßen (Kaidō) des alten Japan und verband Edo (das heutige Tokio) mit Kyōto. Daneben bezeichnet Tōkaidō auch nach dem Gokishichidō System eine Region bestehend aus… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Tōkaidō Shinkansen — 700 series passes the tea fields between Shizuoka and Kakegawa, January 2008 Overview Type Shinkansen …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”