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*''Japanese'': [[上野]]公園 ''(Ueno kouen)''
*''Japanese'': [[上野]]公園 ''(Ueno kouen)''
Ueno Park is a major public park in [[Tokyo]], and the first public park in Japan. Located on the former grounds of the [[Tokugawa clan]] patron temple of [[Kan'ei-ji]], it served as a major site of national ceremonies, expositions, and events in the [[Meiji period]], and is today home to a number of major national institutions, including the [[Tokyo National Museum]], Ueno Zoo, [[Tokyo University of the Arts]], Museum of Western Art, and so forth.
Ueno Park is a major public park in [[Tokyo]], and the first public park in Japan. Located on the former grounds of the [[Tokugawa clan]] patron temple of [[Kan'ei-ji]], it served as a major site of national ceremonies, expositions, and events in the [[Meiji period]], and is today home to a number of major national institutions, including the [[Tokyo National Museum]], Ueno Zoo, [[Tokyo University of the Arts]], and Museum of Western Art, among others.
Kan'ei-ji, albeit considerably shrunken, continues to stand to one side of the park; [[Ueno Toshogu|Ueno Tôshôgû]], an [[Inari]] shrine, and several other [[Shinto shrines]] can also be found in the park. Other notable sights in the park include a statue of [[Saigo Takamori|Saigô Takamori]] designed by [[Takamura Koun|Takamura Kôun]] and unveiled in [[1898]], and a gravesite for the [[Shogitai|Shôgitai]], established in [[1869]] and expanded in [[1874]].
Kan'ei-ji, albeit considerably shrunken, continues to stand to one side of the park; [[Ueno Toshogu|Ueno Tôshôgû]], an [[Inari]] shrine, and several other [[Shinto shrines]] can also be found in the park. Other notable sights in the park include a statue of [[Saigo Takamori|Saigô Takamori]] designed by [[Takamura Koun|Takamura Kôun]] and unveiled in [[1898]], and a gravesite for the [[Shogitai|Shôgitai]], established in [[1869]] and expanded in [[1874]].
==History==
==History==
Following the establishment of Kan'ei-ji in [[1626]], [[Mizuno Katsutaka]], lord of [[Shimodate han]], had an island built in the middle of the pond which lay within the temple grounds, and constructed a hall dedicated to the deity [[Benten]] atop it, in emulation of the Benten Hall on [[Chikubushima]] at the center of [[Lake Biwa]]. This large, [[lotus]]-filled, pond, known as Shinobazu Pond, continues today to dominate the southwestern portion of Ueno Park. Though originally accessible only by small boats, the Benten Hall was connected to the outer edges of the pond by stone bridges in the 1660s or early 1670s, and remains connected and easily accessible today. This Benten Hall was destroyed in air raids in 1945, but was rebuilt by September 1958. The chief objects of worship within the hall include a statue of Benten supposedly made by [[Ennin]] himself, along with images of [[Daikokuten]] and [[Bishamonten]]. A golden dragon on the ceiling of the hall was painted by Kodama Kibô<!--児玉希望-->; an ink painting of a dragon by [[Tani Buncho|Tani Bunchô]] dating to [[1832]] is also visible on the ceiling of the handwashing station in front of the hall.<ref>Plaque at Benten Hall, Shinobazu Pond.[https://www.flickr.com/photos/toranosuke/8543689105/sizes/k/]</ref>
Following the destruction of Kan'ei-ji in the [[1868]] [[battle of Ueno]], there were proposals to build a hospital on the temple's former grounds. However, Dutch physician [[A.F. Bauduin]] advocated preserving the site for its natural beauty, and so Ueno Park was established as Japan's first public park in [[1873]], while Kan'ei-ji was restored on a much shrunken grounds nearby.<ref>Plaque on bust of Bauduin in Ueno Park.</ref>
Following the destruction of Kan'ei-ji in the [[1868]] [[battle of Ueno]], there were proposals to build a hospital on the temple's former grounds. However, Dutch physician [[A.F. Bauduin]] advocated preserving the site for its natural beauty, and so Ueno Park was established as Japan's first public park in [[1873]], while Kan'ei-ji was restored on a much shrunken grounds nearby.<ref>Plaque on bust of Bauduin in Ueno Park.</ref>
