Kiyosumi Gardens: The Meiji Lake of Stepping Stones

Why is it significant?

Step onto the sweeping gravel promenade of Kiyosumi Gardens, one of the most sublime and magnificent kaiyushiki stroll gardens in Tokyo.

Key Facts

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Step onto the sweeping gravel promenade of Kiyosumi Gardens, one of the most sublime and magnificent kaiyushiki stroll gardens in Tokyo. Spanning over eight hectares around an immense, mirror-like lake, this landscape masterpiece was originally an Edo-period merchant estate before being acquired in eighteen seventy-eight by Yataro Iwasaki, the legendary founder of the Mitsubishi industrial conglomerate. Iwasaki transformed the grounds into an opulent pleasure retreat to entertain foreign business executives and national leaders, opening it to the public in nineteen thirty-two.

Kiyosumi is world-famous among landscape architects for its extraordinary collection of Meisho-seki, or famous regional boulders. Yataro Iwasaki used his fleet of Mitsubishi steamships to transport colossal, multi-ton natural stone boulders from every corner of Japan—including blue stones from Izu, granite from Kurama in Kyoto, and basalt boulders from Sado Island—placing them around the lakeshore with breathtaking sculptural precision. The harmonious placement of stone lanterns and reflecting waters creates a living landscape scroll of rare Japanese horticultural beauty.

Venture out across the Iso-watari, a series of flat, massive stone stepping stones laid directly through the shallow waters of the lake. As you step from boulder to boulder, giant black carp and red-eared slider turtles glide peacefully right beside your shoes, while grey herons perch motionless on stone lanterns reflected in the glassy surface. Stepping carefully across the ancient stone paths, one feels completely immersed in the timeless tranquility of Japanese garden art.

In the center of the lake stands the Ryotei, an enchanting Sukiya-style timber teahouse built entirely over the water in nineteen zero-nine to host British Field Marshal Lord Kitchener, which miraculously survived the second World War firebombings completely intact.

Take a seat on a stone bench along the water's edge, letting the serene reflections wash over you as you complete your journey through Ryogoku's sumo power, Hokusai's artistic waters, and Fukagawa's poetic heart.