Historical Sites of the Japanese Missions to Tang China
Shin-Kamigoto
Nakadori Island has several sites that are associated with the Japanese diplomatic missions to Tang China (photograph: Hime Shrine). Around the inlet called Mikanoura (three-day inlet), so named because the missions’ ships would stop there for three days, there are Kinpose, a cape where it is believed the missions’ ships had their sails repaired, and Mifune-sama, a ship-shaped stone to which the envoys are said to have prayed for the safety of their voyages. Also, around the areas now known as Aiko and Aokata, which are referenced in the Hizen-no-Kuni Fudoki (Chronicles of Hizen Province) as harbors where the missions’ ships waited for the wind, there are the ruins of Hime Shrine, where the envoys are said to have prayed for safety on their voyage, and the Tomojiri Stone, where the mission ships are said to have moored.
