If this is Thursday it must be postcards, 585

 

 

 

 

 

The Shinkyo Bridge (Sacred Red Bridge), Nikko, Japan, ca early 1900s

 

This unused vintage postcard from Japan likely dates to just after 1904.  It has a divided back which did not become legal until around 1907/1908 in the United States and appeared about that same time within a couple of years in other parts of the world.  This is a black & white photograph that has been tinted and produced as a color postcard.

 

The red bridge is part of the Futarasan Shrine, a Shinto shrine in the city of Nikko, Tochigi Prefecture, Japan.  The bridge design dates back to 1636, but there was a bridge here even before then.  In 1902 the bridge was washed away by floods then rebuilt in 1904 using the 1636 design.  A legend related in the Nikko Station, Nikko Transportation Guide about the bridge concerns a priest named “Shodo Shonin who was traveling in the area with his followers in 766 when they came to the edge of the Daiya-gawa River and were unable to cross it.  The priest dropped to his knees and prayed, then was answered by a gigantic god called Jinja-Daisho who appeared on the opposite bank with two big snakes, one blue and one red, wrapped around his arm.  The god threw the snakes across the river and they were transformed into a rainbow-colored bridge with grass growing on its top.  Shodo Shonin and his followers were able to safely cross after which both the bridge and the god disappeared.”  It is said that a bridge has been built and maintained here since that time.  The bridge is a lacquered vermillion color and is known as of the three most beautiful bridges in Japan.  The bridge was registered as a UNESCO World Heritage in 1999.  It measures 28 m or 91 ft long, 7.4 m or 24 ft wide, and is 10.6 m or 34 ft above the river. 

 

The bridge used to be closed to the general public and only opened for important military leaders and imperial messangers.  Now visitors can walk across it after paying an admission fee.  The bridge is the entryway to the main sightseeing area of central Nikko.  Many people stop and take pictures of the bridge even if they do not walk across it.

 

For additional information, see:

 

https://www.nikkostation.com/shinkyo-bridge/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Futarasan_jinja