After the dawn of history about 2,000 years ago, Izumo Province, centering around Matsue, developed its own civilization. The people of Izumo stood in rivalry against the Yamato race who lived in and around the Kinki district (present day Kansai district, centering on the Osaka-Kyoto region). The Izumo race was finally overwhelmed by the advancing civilization of the Yamato race.
Lafcadio Hearn, a Greek-Irish-American who became a naturalized Japanese citizen, did the most to bring Matsue to the attention of the world. Hearn is perhaps the best-known western writer of the Meiji era in Japan. As a young man he migrated to the U.S. where he worked as a newspaper correspondent in New Orleans. In 1890 he was sent to Japan by a New York publishing company. He became enamored with Japan and married Koizumi Setsuko, a 23-year old woman from an old Matsue samurai family. He then adopted the name of Koizumi Yakumo, a combination of his wife's maiden name and the word Yakumo meanig eight clouds, which was a poetic term that appeared often in ancient writings about this part of Japan.
Matsue, facing a large lake, is built on a peninsula that separates the lake from the Japan Sea. Actually, Shinjiko is not a lake at all but a lagoon that channels into a narrow river, which then flows into another lagoon on the other side of Matsue, The Ohashi River connecting the two bodies of water divides the city of Matsue into two parts. With all this water around it, some of the residents like to compare their city to Venice. Lake Shinji is known for its mists, and its beautiful sunsets are a sight of beauty beyond description, a subject that Hearn wrote about in great detail. Together with Kyoto and Kanazawa, Matsue is famous for tea cakes used in the tea ceremony. It is also noted for its production of the tea bowls, vases and tea containers used in tea ceremonies. Among these are Rakuzan-yaki and Sodeshi-yaki ceramics and Yakumo-nuri lacquer ware. These Yakumo-nuri works, produced in the Meiji Era, were first exhibited abroad at the International Exposition in Brussels in 1935.
Many other cultural properties enhance the city, recalling the beauties of the past for its present-day inhabitants and visitors.
Matsue was a castle town and, consequently, a cultural center. It was the home not only of a feudal lord and his samurai but also of many artists and craftsmen who catered to the needs of society's upper classes.
The focal point of Matsue is, of course, the castle with its graceful sweep of its many eaves reminding people of birds in flight. It was built in 1611 by Horio Yoshiharu and later occupied by the Matsudaira clan, kin to Tokugawa.
Matsue Castle, once the home of generation after generation of feudal lords, is today part of Shiroyama Park, attracting a large number of sightseers daily. It is also known as Chidori Castle. Be sure to look for the 3-hollyhock crest of the shogun. The stones used to make the foundation for the fortress were donated by serfs from distant regions because the local stone is too soft. The castle was built as a fortress, not as a residence. Look for the fishtails on the roof, a symbol of water and of prayer against fire. The original donjon has been restored and is open to the public as a museum.
Lafcadio Hearn lived just across the moat in a house that had formerly belonged to a samurai. This house, where he stayed 7 months and has remained unchanged since he left Matsue and has been preserved as a museum. Hearn lived in the city for 15 months as an English teacher at Matsue Middle School. Adjoining Hearn's residence in a Western-style building is the Koizumi Yakumo (Hearn) Memorial Hall. This hall is dedicated to Hearn as a celebrated interpreter of Japan. The hall contains a good collection of his manuscripts and other valuable articles, all suggestive of his life in Japan.
Tanabe Art Museum, next door to Hearn's former house, displays many tea objects, "Fujinayaki" ware and other ceramics, calligraphy works, paintings and antiques. Wood block prints by local artists are sometimes exibited. Choemon Tanabe was a former governor of Shimane and an amateur potter. Among the many types of art he collected are some fine ceramics. They are on display at the museum.
Continuing along this street that parallels the moat, you'll soon come to a samurai (feudal warrior) house (buke yashiki) that's been turned into a museum. It displays various articles illustrative of the daily life of a samurai family in the Edo period. Soft classical Japanese music plays in the background as you walk around the garden. Look at the traditional tatami mat rooms where clothing and utensils are on display. The wonderfully smoke-stained kitchen in the rear of the house.
Another 5 min. walk will lead you to Meimeian (Tea House), which is a well-preserved typical tea house of the "Irimoyazukuri" architectural style. It was originally built in 1779 by Lord Fumai Matsudaira, the seventh lord (1751-1818) of the Matsue clan. He was a man of high culture who established the Fumai school of tea ceremony. The best feature is the thatched roof and split bamboo used for rain gutters. The grounds are quiet, distant from the crowds, and create just the right mood needed for the ceremony.
The Matsue Cultural Museum is a 5 min. walk from th Prefectural Government Office, where it displays arts, crafts and folk utensils and implements, totalling some 1,300 item covering the three eras of Meiji, Taisho and Showa.
Gesshoji Temple is a 15 min. bus ride from Matsue Station. This is the family temple and burial ground of the Matsudair family from the first to the ninth generations and it was established by Naomasa Matsudaira, whose grandfather was Ieyas Tokugawa. It has rows of stone lanterns and a fine specimen of mausoleum gate architecture.
Another attraction in the city is the Kamosu Shrine. This shrine is designated as a National Treasure for its unique architectural style, called "Taisha-zukuri", the oldest known style in Japan. Compared with the famous Izumo Grand Shrine, designed after a similar but slightly different technique, Kamosu Shrine gives visitors a more feminine impression. Inside the shrine, the walls and ceiling are ornamented with beautiful paintings.
If you are interested in duck's meat, go to Shinji where Yakumo Honjin Hotel is situated. This is where travelers, whether on foot, on horseback or in palanquin, put up for a night or two. There dwelt a lot of hunters, who hunted birds and animals in the neighborhood and entertained their lords with the meat. No other meat was as excellent as the meat of wild ducks coming from Siberia across the Japan Sea to settle down on Lake Shinji. The family recipe is "Wild Duck's Meat cooked in a huge ear-shell".
There are also ancient items on display: helmet and armor, shop curtains made of hemp ropes, stone-paved grounds, woodworks, fire extinguishers from the Tokugawa Era (1600 - 1867), and numerous other interesting items.
If you like hot springs, don't stay at the noisy Matsue Onsen, just near the downtown area. Instead, go to Tamazukuri Onsen on the southern shore of Shinjiko, which has a dozen salty, bitter springs whose waters are said to be efficacious against various deseases.
Old things seem to be reflected in the character of the citizens of Matsue. The people are conservative but blessed with a heart-warming touch of human kindness. With its hospitable people and natural beauty, clear water and pure air, Matsue remains a sightseeing resort of ancient associations and the cultural center of the San-in district, not that much changed from the image projected by Lafcadio Hearn.
