Yashima, Takamatsu — one of a series of shore days Japan Royal Service builds for residents and guests of The World.
The mountain east of Takamatsu has a flat top, which is why a fleet anchored beneath it in 1185 and why the two families who were deciding who would rule Japan fought here.
Eight hundred and forty years later there is a building on that flat top made almost entirely of glass, which curves like a dropped ribbon and does not touch the view. You can have it to yourself after the last visitor has gone.
What happened here
The Battle of Yashima was one of the closing engagements of the Genpei War. The Taira had come by sea; the Minamoto came overland and appeared where they were not expected. The episode every Japanese schoolchild knows happened offshore: a fan was set on the mast of a Taira boat as a taunt, and an archer named Nasu no Yoichi was ordered to hit it from horseback in a moving sea. He did.
The ground still carries the names — the pond where the victors washed the blades, the spring where a warrior drank. Standing on the terrace with the Inland Sea below, the geography of the battle explains itself in about a minute, which is more than can be said for most battlefields.
Yashima-ji
Near the summit stands Yashima-ji, the eighty-fourth temple of the Shikoku pilgrimage, traditionally founded in the eighth century by the Chinese monk Ganjin — the same Ganjin who, after five failed crossings and the loss of his sight, finally reached Japan and changed its Buddhism. The temple's treasure hall holds material from the battle and the centuries after it.
Below the temple is the Shishi-no-Reigan lookout, where visitors throw small unglazed clay discs off the cliff for luck. It is a silly thing to do at a great height above a beautiful sea, and everybody does it.
Yashimaru
The observation building on the summit, opened in 2022, is a single continuous glass loop that rises and falls with the ground rather than sitting on it. Inside, the corridor bends so that the sea appears, disappears and returns as you walk — the architecture is doing to the Inland Sea what the old garden-makers did to a mountain.
It also holds a panoramic artwork of Yashima at night that runs the length of the interior wall.
The building can be taken privately in the evening on a limited number of days. During a private evening you can have the architecture and design explained by someone qualified to explain it, the panorama work interpreted, and the history, geology and battle of Yashima given properly. A private talk or a small performance can be discussed.
The reason to do it in the evening
In early October the sun goes down over the Inland Sea at around a quarter to six. If you are in the building from five, you get the last of the light on the water, then the blue half-hour, then the lights of Takamatsu coming on below — three quite different views out of the same glass, in about ninety minutes, with nobody else inside.
We will add one correction, because photographs of this building circulate that are not current. A large moon-like light installation that appears in some images was an event piece and is not installed. What is there is the building, the artwork and the sea.
Dining
Catering into the building has been done — a local-ingredient European menu, successfully. There is no precedent for Japanese formal dining, sushi or kaiseki inside it, and no precedent for a chef finishing dishes in front of guests. We are working on what the kitchen and the fire regulations actually allow. When we know, we will say plainly what can and cannot be done rather than promise a dinner and improvise.
What we arrange
The private evening, on the days it is possible. An interpreter, since the commentary is not delivered in English. The temple and lookout beforehand. Transport up the mountain — vehicles can be brought close to the building by prior application, which has to be made in advance. And an honest answer on dinner before you plan an evening around one.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can Yashimaru be taken privately?
Yes, in the evening, on a limited number of days. During a private evening the architecture, the panoramic artwork and the history of Yashima can all be interpreted for your party.
Can dinner be served inside the building?
Catering has been done successfully — a local-ingredient European menu. There is no precedent for Japanese formal dining, sushi or kaiseki inside it, and none for a chef finishing dishes in front of guests. We are establishing what the kitchen and fire regulations allow before promising a dinner.
What time does the sun set over the Inland Sea in early October?
Around a quarter to six. From five o'clock you get the last light on the water, the blue half-hour, and then the lights of Takamatsu coming on below.
More on this rotation
- Miyajima on both tides — Hiroshima
- One night as the lord of Ōzu Castle — Matsuyama
- The only imperial bath in Japan — Matsuyama
For residents and guests of The World
The ship lies at Takamatsu for days, not hours. That single fact changes more than anything else on this page. A place that opens three days a week stops being a gamble. An artisan can give you a whole afternoon instead of a demonstration. Nothing has to be cut short to fit a gangway.
We are a Japanese company, working in Japanese, with the people who own these places. The arrangements are made by someone the other side already knows.
Enquiries are handled privately and directly, at japanroyalservice.com/contact. We do not publish our clients, our itineraries, or our rates.
Access notes
We asked these questions of each place directly, and the answers are specific to it. Most guests will have no use for them; they are here because somebody will.
With prior application a wheelchair-accessible vehicle can be driven up to the building and parked at the eaves. From the stopping point to the entrance is roughly twenty metres over unpaved ground, and there is a ramp at the door. The route from the car park on the aquarium side is step-free; the usual walking route from the temple has steps.
