Kumano cedar

Japanese: 熊野杉 - くまのすぎ

The name is given to cedar lumber whose transportation base is Shingu at the mouth of the Kumano River in Wakayama Prefecture, but its main production area is the Kitayama region upstream (present-day Kamikitayama and Shimokitayama villages in Yoshino County, Nara Prefecture). Forestry development in the Kitayama region, which has an abundant natural forest of cedar and cypress, began in the early modern period when the region came under the control of the Edo Shogunate, and from that time onwards the Shogunate imposed a "wood tax" system on the 14 villages of Kitayama, lending "borrowed silver" as a lumber advance payment in addition to cedar and cypress lumber (three and a half ken long, 1 shaku 2 sun square lumber) to be collected in lieu of the annual tax, and forcing them to submit a total of over 800 pieces of good quality lumber per year.

Source: Heibonsha World Encyclopedia, 2nd Edition Information

Japanese:

和歌山県熊野川河口の新宮を輸送基地とする杉材の称であるが，主産地は上流の北山郷(現，奈良県吉野郡上北山村，下北山村)である。杉，ヒノキ天然林の蓄積豊かな北山地方の林業開発は，同地方が江戸幕府領となった近世初期に始まるが，その当時から幕府は北山郷14ヵ村に〈木年貢〉制を敷き，本年貢代りに収納する杉，ヒノキ材(長さ3間半の1尺2寸角木)のほか，材木前渡金に当たる〈拝借銀〉を融資し，併せて年800本を超える良材を上納させた。

出典　株式会社平凡社世界大百科事典第２版について　情報

<<: Kumano Taisha Shrine

>>: Kumano Navy