History
HISTORY

The atmosphere and bustle of Osaka, the water city

The canal and its riverboats gave Osaka city a unique and picturesque landscape. Various boats, including those transporting commercial goods and construction materials, pleasure boats, passenger boats, and ferries, came and went continuously. On both sides of the river, there were wharves and loading docks, as well as markets selling fish, vegetables, lumber, and other items, which were bustling businesses.

Nishiki-e prints and literature depict scenes of people floating in boats throughout the year to enjoy cherry blossom viewing or the cool evening breeze, as well as inns and shops with tatami rooms jutting out onto the riverbank, weaving seasonal themes and snow, giving us an idea of how the river was closely connected to people's lives, both as a place to relax and as a place of work.

Naniwa Tenman Festival (Painting by Sadahide, 1859)
Osaka Prefectural Nakanoshima Library
The Tenjin Festival has been held for 1200 years. A portable shrine is carried on a boat from Tenjinbashi Bridge (left), and boats of all sizes, including the Hoan-sen and Omukae Ningyo-bune, are rowed out onto the river, while the bridge is bustling with spectators. The three great bridges of Naniwa are depicted, along with Tenmabashi Bridge across from Tenjinbashi and Naniwabashi Bridge on the right.

Osaka attractions
Scenes from the Tenjin Festival
(Painting by Kyosen Kawasaki et al., 1904)
Osaka Prefectural Nakanoshima Library
It says, "View of Tenjinbashi from Nakanoshima."
The painting depicts the atmosphere of a summer festival, with boats carrying bonfires and boats for worship cruising the river and fireworks bursting into the night sky. In the upper right corner, Osaka Tenmangu Shrine is depicted, bustling with worshippers.

One Hundred Views of Naniwa
Dotonbori Corner Theater
(Painted by a national official, Ansei era 1854-1860)
Osaka Prefectural Nakanoshima Library
Dotonbori was Naniwa's most prosperous entertainment district, densely packed with theaters. This painting depicts a square theater located south of Dotonbori.

One Hundred Views of Naniwa
Zachoba (illustration by Yoshitaki, date unknown)
Osaka Prefectural Nakanoshima Library
It is one of the three major markets in Osaka, along with the Tenma vegetable market and the Dojima rice market.
Markets were established in the area to sell fish collected from nearby villages every morning. They disappeared in 1931 when the Osaka Central Wholesale Market was established.

After the war, with the advancement of motorization, rivers and moats were filled in and many bridges were removed, but even today many bridge names remain at key locations, such as Shinsaibashi, Yotsubashi, and Nagahoribashi.
In ancient times, the Nihon Shoki records that "a bridge crosses Ikainots*" and that "it is called Obashi (small bridge)." In the Edo period, in contrast to "Edo's 200 towns" and "Kyoto's XNUMX temples," Naniwa was praised for its XNUMX bridges. In reality, there were only about XNUMX bridges in the city, but many bridges are depicted in Joruri and other plays set in Osaka, as well as in Nishiki-e (colored woodblock prints) depicting Osaka's famous sites, and it can be seen that the bridges, along with the rivers, created the unique atmosphere of Osaka.
*Ikainots: There is currently a place name called Ikaino in Ikuno Ward.

[Source] Osaka Brand Resources Report (Osaka Brand Committee, 2006)
[References] Water City Osaka Story (Osaka City, Osaka Urban Association, 1995), Osaka Shunju No. 132 (Shinpu Shobo, 2008), Water City Osaka 2009 Pamphlet (Water City Osaka 2009 Executive Committee, 2009)