Kiyomizu Kannon-dō

In front of you is the Kiyomizu Kannon-dō, one of the oldest buildings in Tokyo. If its terrace on stilts reminds you of something, that is because it was deliberately built to look like the famous Kiyomizu-dera in Kyoto.

1Kyoto in miniature

In 1625 the monk Tenkai founded the great temple of Kan'ei-ji on this hill, as a guardian of Edo Castle. His idea was to recreate in Edo the sacred landscape of Kyoto: Mount Hiei, Lake Biwa and, in 1631, this hall inspired by Kiyomizu. It was moved to its present site in 1694. It survived the Battle of Ueno in 1868, when imperial troops crushed the shogun's last loyalists here, and it is designated an Important Cultural Property.

2Dolls with a soul

Inside, a Kannon who protects child-rearing is worshipped. Those who pray to her for a child and are granted one offer her a doll in thanks. Every September a ningyō kuyō is held: a ceremony in which the dolls are sent off with prayers and then burned.

In Japan it is traditionally believed that much-loved objects end up with something of a soul; that is why they are not simply thrown away.

3The moon pine

Around 1857, Hiroshige drew a pine here with a branch curved into a circle, the ‘moon pine’. It was lost in the Meiji era, and in 2012 it was brought back with a new tree.

4What to look for

• The moon pine: look through the circle towards the pond.
• The terrace on stilts, in the Kyoto style.
• The dolls you can see inside.