This is a manhole photo in Otawara I posted this last year but I wanted to post it again since I found who I believe the samurai is. I believe this is Nasu no Yoichi. There is a statue in Otawara that also is Nasu no Yoichi so he must be a symbol of the city.
Nasu no Yoichi (那須 与一?) (c. 1169 – c. 1232) was a samurai who fought alongside the Minamoto clan in the Genpei War. He is particularly famous for his actions at the Battle of Yashima in 1184. According to the Heike Monogatari, the enemy Taira placed a fan atop the mast of one of their ships, claiming it protected the ship from arrows, and daring the Minamoto warriors to shoot it off. Sitting atop his mount in the waves, his target atop the ship rocking as well, Nasu nevertheless shot it down with only one shot. (Wikipedia)
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| Nasu no Yoichi, as depicted in a hanging scroll in the Watanabe Museum. (Wikipedia) |
This is so cool and what a story behind the samurai. A legend in the making :)
ReplyDeleteJapan Australia
This one is soooo cool! :)
ReplyDeleteThank you both. :)
ReplyDeleteI have seen it couple of times and that's exactly what I thought when I first noticed it. He is from a big clan and his name is everywhere in northern Tochigi!
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing and have a wonderful day.
Yoshi
Thank you. I have read about this samurai from the many Japanese history books I've read. I'm curious why he is popular in Northern Tochigi as I am not certain he is from there. I wonder if Nasushiobara is named after him?
ReplyDeleteThat's cool!
ReplyDeleteYes, comparing the scroll and the manhole picture, it is clearing Nasu no Yoichi.
ReplyDeleteDefinitely looks like Yasu No Yoichi, but it's surprising to see him (with horse, bow and arrow) in the water in Tochigi. Was he from there?
ReplyDeleteHe's very famous in Takamatsu (this is where Yashima is located), almost a symbol of the city, and manholes depicting him are all over town. Here is one : http://www.flickr.com/photos/etsuko/185455761/
I was wondering the same thing. I am not sure why he is a symbol of Otawara.
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