The Shimanoshō site is related to the seventh-century mansion of Soga no Umako, and the Shima no miya palace which succeeded it. Excavation at this site uncovered a square pond, measuring 42 meters on a side and over 2 meters deep, with nearly vertical stone walls for its embankments and a bottom paved with flat stones. This square pond might be the garden pond of the mansion of Soga no Umako, and its design is thought to have been influenced by garden ponds of the Korean peninsula. It is located in the village of Asuka, Nara prefecture.
Japanese Garden Dictionary: A Glossary for Japanese Gardens and Their History
(C) 2010 by Ono Kenkichi and Walter Edwards. All rights reserved.
