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Knowledge Spots｜Chibanosuke Guide 2What jobs did dogs have in the Jomon period? Chibanosuke Guide Buried Dog from the Kasori Shell Mounds Looks like there were dogs even in the Jomon period! Did they go on walks or play with humans, like now? They might’ve played, aye, but they had real jobs to do as well. Jobs? Like what? The Jomon dogs were hunting partners. They were indispensable companions in hunting, driving prey into traps. The prey would have also become food for the dogs as a reward. Did they have other roles too? In cold seasons, humans and

, built facilities to bring water to the fields, and then started paddy rice cultivation. But, recent research has revealed that rice was also cultivated during the Jomon period. Was rice in the Yayoi period different from rice we have today? Rice grain impressions left on Yayoi earthenware transferred with silicon Indeed. It seems that there were individual differences in the height and size of the ears of rice in the Yayoi period. It is also said that the color of the ears of rice was reddish compared to the color of ears of rice that modern people imagine. Modern

did Lord Yoritomo have Hirotsune killed? But Hirotsune played such a big role in helping him become the Kamakura-dono, didn’t he? Aye, but Hirotsune was known to be fiercely independent, and paid no mind to the imperial court. That kind of attitude was bound to clash with Lord Yoritomo’s plans—he aimed to unify his vassals and run the shogunate under the court’s authority. Hirotsune had simply become an obstacle.

Knowledge Spots｜Chibanosuke Guide 13What Was the Relationship Between the Chiba Clan and the Oyumi Kubō? Chibanosuke Guide Did the Chiba clan and Ashikaga Yoshiaki, the Oyumi Kubō, always fight each other? Not quite. Some members of the Chiba clan actually sided with Yoshiaki. In the Warring States period, it was quite common for people— even within the same family—to switch sides depending on what benefited them. ’Twas the way of the times. So the Chiba clan wasn’t exactly united, then.

Knowledge Spots｜Chibanosuke Guide 15Myōken and the Companions Chibanosuke Guide Who are the group shrouded in clouds, and what’s that strange symbol above them? That’s our guardian deity, Myōken-sama, along with his companions. The symbol above is the Big Dipper. Myōken-sama is the deity of the North Star and the Big Dipper, shining in the northern sky. This is where the story of the Chiba clan begins.

Illustration of Hirakawa Village This is a wooden notice board that listed rules for the whole village to follow. It was usually put up in the village center. What kind of rules were written on it? During the Edo period, the shogunate had boards like this posted with orders such as: be filial to your parents, don’t leave the village without permission, and don’t practice Christianity. Did they take it down when the Meiji era started? Actually, they put up new boards in the name of the Meiji government—with almost the exact same rules! Huh?! If

Myōkenji Temple in Chiba Village, Shimousa Province) Decorative Banner for the Large Festival Boat The old Myōken Festival seems really different from today. Aye. Back in the Edo period, two large boats joined the Myōken Festival procession-one in front and one behind the mikoshi-each adorned with magnificent decorative banners. Wow, Those banners are so beautiful! Indeed! They were beautifully embroidered and stretched as long as 15 meters.

can see the Chiba City emblem at the top of the arch. I didn’t know it had over a hundred years of history! I wonder why it’s shaped like that? 'Tis based on one of our family crestes ─ the tuskihoshi-mon (moon and star crest) ─ combined with the letter for "chi"(千), the first letter of “Chiba”(千葉). The sweeping strokes of the “chi” (千) also form the star, and the curved lines on either side represent a crescent moon.

Same Sugoroku Game All Across Japan!? Chibanosuke Guide They say the same illustration for the “Fukutoku Enman Sugoroku” game was used in various regions! But the shops shown on it were different in each town? Aye, it seems a publisher in Tokyo sold blank sugoroku boards—with only the pictures—to local newspapers across the country. The newspapers then sold the spaces as ad slots to local shops, matched them to the illustrations, printed the boards, and delivered them with the New Year’s edition. Quite the clever business model, indeed!

Knowledge Spots｜Chibanosuke Guide 40The Harsh Reality of Evacuation of School Children Chibanosuke Guide Did all the schoolchildren who were supposed to evacuate actually get to leave? Nay, the "enko sokai"(縁故疎 開) system ─ evacuating to stay with relatives in the countryside ─ was given priority over organized group evacuation through schools("shudan sokai", 集団 疎開). But around one-third of school children couldn’t evacuate at all, whether due to poor health, lack of resources, or needing to help with family work. It really makes you think… What was the purpose of evacuation of school children?