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Fuji-Hakone-Izu NP, Kanagawa
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In May 1729, a shogun-bound elephant reached Hakone-juku exhausted after crossing the pass. Officials reportedly revived it with manju and mandarins; it recovered, then walked through the checkpoint toward Edo.
An 1848–50 fan print by Utagawa Hiroshige I pokes fun at the checkpoint’s inspections: a woman examiner holds an abacus over a travel pass and ledger, hinting that scrutiny might depend on money.
At Hakone, women leaving Edo—not incoming guns—drew the strictest scrutiny; firearm checks later shifted to Arai. A female inspector, or hitomi-onna, even unbound a traveler’s hair to compare her features with her permit.
Edo travelers were forbidden to cross Lake Ashi by boat, so the checkpoint’s hillside lookout watched the water day and night. Two foot soldiers worked in pairs, taking turns on watch.
The checkpoint’s archive tells of O-tama, a young maid caught trying to pass without a permit in 1702 and jailed here. Local legend links nearby O-tama Pond to her story.
About 20 staff worked here, while senior samurai from Odawara served month-long shifts, bringing rice, bowls and daily supplies. Excavators found that the officers’ dishes did not even match.
A detailed 1865 repair report, rediscovered in the Egawa family archive in 1983, revealed the checkpoint’s layout. Archaeologists paired it with excavations to guide the reconstruction, completed in 2007.
At the checkpoint’s archery and firearms practice range, excavators found a retaining wall missing from the old drawings and a musket ball about 1 cm across—clues that shooting practice took place here.
Beneath surviving foundations, excavators found more than 1 m of earth fill. The discovery showed that builders reshaped the steep lakeshore to create level ground for the checkpoint buildings.
A board displayed rules issued in 1711: travelers had to remove hats or hoods so officials could see their faces, and palanquin doors had to be opened for inspection. Pre-notified noble processions could be exempt.
Excavations uncovered few weapons but many bowls, a brazier and a tobacco-ash receptacle. The finds suggest that guards’ daily routines included meals and smoking as well as inspections.
The buildings’ deep black finish is shibuzumi, a traditional blend of persimmon tannin and pine soot. It helps deter insects, but lakeside wind and rain wear it down, so it needs regular repair.
