• Source: Shikina-en

The gardens of Shikina-en (識名園) are located on a small hill to the south of Shuri Castle in Naha, Okinawa. The residence and its gardens are also known as Shichina-nu-Udun (シチナヌウドゥン) or Southern Gardens (南苑), as opposed to the Eastern Gardens (東苑) or Uchayaudun (御茶屋御殿), laid out on a small hill east of Shuri Castle in 1677. In 1992 Hiroshi Shō, the great-grandson of Shō Tai, the last king of the Ryūkyū Kingdom, donated the royal mausoleum of Tamaudun and Shikina-en to the City of Naha.




Design


The stroll garden features a pond with two small islands; a Chinese-style hexagonal pavilion; other pavilions with red tiles, the use of which was reserved for the upper classes; Chinese-style arched bridges; and seasonal plantings of plum, wisteria, and bellflower. This blend of Japanese and Chinese design and features has been acclaimed as "uniquely Ryukyuan" by UNESCO and advisory body ICOMOS.




History


The gardens were laid out in 1799 to embellish one of the residences of the Shō family, rulers of the Ryūkyū Kingdom; they were used for the reception of an envoy from China the following year. First designated for protection in 1941 in accordance with the 1919 Law, they were completely destroyed during the Battle of Okinawa. Restoration began in 1975 and took around twenty years, at a cost of some eight hundred million yen. In 1976 the gardens were once again designated a Place of Scenic Beauty; in 2000 they were re-designated a Special Place of Scenic Beauty and included within the inscription of the UNESCO World Heritage Site Gusuku Sites and Related Properties of the Kingdom of Ryukyu. The gardens stretch over an area of 4.2 ha and the UNESCO nomination includes a buffer zone of a further 84.2 ha.




See also



List of Historic Sites of Japan (Okinawa)
List of Important Cultural Properties of Japan (Okinawa: structures)
List of Special Places of Scenic Beauty, Special Historic Sites and Special Natural Monuments
World Heritage Sites in Japan
Fukushūen




References






Bibliography


Mansfield, Stephen (2011). Japan's Master Gardens - Lessons in Space and Environment (Hardback). Tokyo, Rutland, Singapore: Tuttle. ISBN 978-4-8053-1128-8.




External links


Introduction to Shikina-en
Gusuku Sites and Related Properties of the Kingdom of Ryukyu
(in Japanese) Shikina-en
(in Japanese) Pamphlet with plan of the gardens

Kata Kunci Pencarian:

• Taman Shikina
• Shikina-en
• Shuri Castle
• List of gardens
• Tamaudun
• Japanese garden
• Hiroshi Shō
• Japan Heritage
• List of Natural Monuments of Japan (Okinawa)
• List of Cultural Properties of Japan – structures (Okinawa)
• Japan National Route 58