Willow Reflecting the Shadows of Edo - Scene at the Entrance to Yoshiwara (Late Edo Period)

Willow Reflecting the Shadows of Edo - Scene at the Entrance to Yoshiwara (Late Edo Period)

The Yoshiwara Amusement quarters were officially recognized by the Edo shogunate as a pleasure district that played a central role in the culture of the common people and the city's economy. The path leading to the Yoshiwara Daimon (gate) by following the Nihonzutsumi (Japanese bank) was a psychological boundary between the everyday and the extraordinary, and the willow trees standing there played a symbolic role. When customers would pass by these willows on their way home after a night of entertainment, they would look back and reflect on the time they spent with the prostitutes. This image was repeatedly depicted by ukiyoe artists and deeply engraved in people's memories, overlapping with their awareness of famous places in Edo.

Yoshiwara was not just a place of entertainment, but a space where money and entertainment were intricately intertwined. Oiran (courtesans) and other prostitutes entertained their customers by honing their skills in arts, conversation, and culture. In the tatami room, manners and language were developed in a sophisticated manner, and night time moved at a different speed from reality. It functioned as a world cut off from the outside world, and the gazing willow at its entrance was a symbol that marked the boundary with the real world.

From the late Edo period to the end of the Edo period, the urban population grew, the merchant class emerged, and a consumer culture developed. Yoshiwara became more prestigious as part of this trend and prospered with the culture of oiran (courtesans) at its core. Wealthy merchants and warriors came to Yoshiwara for socializing and trading, and teahouses lined the streets, creating a scene of splendor and melancholy in the area around Migarayanagi.

Mikaeri-yanagi symbolizes the entrance and farewell of Yoshiwara, and has long been talked about as a landscape that remains in people's hearts. The act of looking back at the willows at the moment of returning to reality reflects the depths of Edo's brothel culture, with lingering memories of entertainment, love, disappointment, and hope.