Madama minato himon

Erected: 1522
Japanese: 真玉湊碑文 (Madama minato himon)

The Madama minato himon ("Madama harbor stele inscription") is a stele erected in 1522 just outside the Shureimon gate of Shuri castle, the main royal palace of the Ryûkyû Kingdom.

The monument commemorates the construction at that time, under King Shô Shin, of the Madama michi - a circle road around the capital - and an associated bridge, Madan bashi, which would allow soldiers from Shuri and a number of areas to the south (i.e. Shimajiri) to come into the city and be able to help defend it in case of attack.

A reconstruction of the stele stands just outside the Shureimon today, alongside a reconstruction of the "Kokuô shôtoku hi, a royal stele also originally erected in that location in 1522.

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References

Gregory Smits, Maritime Ryukyu, University of Hawaii Press (2019), 140.