2.4 Yasugi: Gardens and Steel (December 20th)#

Since we had already completed our visit to Izumo Taisha ahead of schedule on the 19th, we decided to pivot on the 20th and head to the neighboring city of Yasugi. Little did I expect that this would become the third renowned industrial city we would inadvertently visit on this trip.

Our first destination was the prestigious Adachi Museum of Art. Unlike typical museums that focus on antique calligraphy or paintings, the core “exhibit” here is the garden itself. Its most distinctive feature is its ingenious use of “framed scenery”—for example, the famous “Living Screen” (The Dry Landscape Window) and the “Living Hanging Scroll.” These windows frame the garden landscape perfectly, turning the view into “living paintings” hung upon the walls. Although viewing the garden through glass creates a physical distance, it guarantees a pristine scene completely free of wandering tourists—an organized stillness that is highly worth seeing.

Even more impressive than the landscape itself was the maintenance work behind it. Beyond the regular pruning of trees and shrubs, the entire staff dedicates over an hour every single morning before opening just to clean the grounds thoroughly. The sheer volume of work is astounding. This obsession with detail is the ultimate embodiment of Japan’s “craftsman culture.” Such almost stubborn patience and determination may not be unique to Japan, but it is certainly rare in the world.

In the afternoon, we moved on to the Wako Museum (Museum of Japanese Steel). My knowledge of steel is shallow, and I had assumed “Wako” simply referred to the raw material for Japanese swords (katana). Only after entering did I realize that Yasugi has been a stronghold of iron and steel since ancient times. The museum comprehensively displays the evolution of the industry, from the traditional Tatara ironmaking method to modern technology. This visit also jogged my memory regarding “Yasuki Hagane” (Yasuki Steel), a famous industrial brand name.

Faced with such a rich collection, I had to tap into my limited knowledge of materials science to act as a tour guide for my wife, offering a surface-level explanation of everything from the difference between pig iron and steel to the principles of mining and smelting. The museum features interactive exhibits; I tried pulling the single-person hand bellows, but when it came to the “Tenbin-Fugo”—a massive foot-operated bellows worked by multiple people like a seesaw—the sheer scale of it looked so exhausting that I abandoned any thought of trying it. Yasugi adopted these large-scale air delivery devices early on, using the powerful airflow to raise furnace temperatures and smelt high-purity Tamahagane (jewel steel).

Of course, ancient methods are now history. Today, Yasugi has long since switched to advanced electric furnaces and automated equipment, but the spirit of “pursuing ultimate purity” remains unchanged. The “Yasuki Steel” produced here is synonymous with the world’s top-tier steel. It can be found everywhere, from Gillette razor blades to high-demand environments like aircraft engines and automotive components.

And so, after admiring the most tranquil of gardens, we inadvertently completed another pilgrimage—this time, to the heavy industry of steel.