Milestone - Ichirizuka

These mounds were built every ri on both sides of the highway. Trees such as Japanese hackberry were planted on the mounds. They are said to have been started by Oda Nobunaga and Toyotomi Hideyoshi, but in 1604 (Keicho 9), the Edo Shogunate began setting them up nationwide, starting with the Tokai, Tozan, and Hokuriku roads. They were set up as a means of convenience for travelers, as a guide for determining fares, and as part of a policy of standardizing weights and measures, but they were left in their original locations even when the highways were rerouted, and repairs were rarely carried out, so they fell into disrepair in the late early modern period. Many of the mounds are planted with Japanese hackberry trees, but there are also pines and other trees. At the end of the Tenpo era (1830-1844), 104 mounds remained on the Tokaido between Shinagawa and Kyoto. Since the Meiji era, most have been demolished due to the sale of land to private individuals and road expansion. Those that are well preserved have been designated as national historic sites.

[Mitsumasa Yamamoto]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

街道の両側に1里ごとに築かれた塚。塚上にはエノキなどの樹木が植えられていた。織田信長、豊臣(とよとみ)秀吉により始められたといわれるが、1604年（慶長9）江戸幕府により東海・東山・北陸道をはじめ、全国規模での設置が始まった。旅行者の便、運賃決定の目安、度量衡統一政策の一環として設置されたが、街道の付け替えなどにも旧位置を動かず、修理もほとんど行われなかったため、近世後期には荒廃した。塚には榎を植えたものが多いが、松などもある。天保(てんぽう)（1830～44）末年東海道品川―京都間には104の塚が現存した。明治以降、敷地の民間への払い下げや道路拡張により大部分が取り壊された。保存の良好なものは国の史跡に指定されている。

［山本光正］

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