さて気分も落ち着いてきて、旅行中撮りためていた写真の整理整頓を進めてきていますが、気にはなっていた写真を再度、じっくり見ていて新発見させられております。
　それは、5/22に九州宗像の宿泊地から電撃の日帰りで訪れていた広島県東広島市河内町入野の、わが家系の故地の寺院「順教寺」訪問時に別に探訪していた小野篁生誕地伝説の地での撮影写真。先日のブログでこの「小野篁産湯の池」に碑が建てられていて、その「施主」として家系に繋がる可能性のある人名として「原 庄左衛門」という名前を確認していましたが、実はその小野篁「産湯川神社」には石造の鳥居が建てられていて、その年紀として、上の２枚目の写真のような刻文が確認できていたのです。そこには「文永二紀」と一瞬読み取れる年代表記があった。常識的に考えると鳥居の建立年は文永２（1265)年と読み取れたのですね。
　そして「施主」として刻印された碑の制作年代もそれと同一である可能性が高い。
　ちょっと想像を超える年代が突然、目の前に出現してしまった。先日のブログ記載時には「要確認」としてこの年代表記には触れなかったのですが、文永２（1265)年を歴史年代照応すれば有名な「文永の役」〜蒙古襲来の直前期、モンゴル帝国から国書がもたらされた年にあたる。
　「え、その当時からこの地域の有力者として、碑文に名を記すほどだったの？」であります。


・・・ということでこの写真解析についてさらに調査を進めていたら、文永とみえた部分が実は「文政」であることが徐々に判明してきた。
　この年代は1819年に相当する。この当時は日本中が旅や観光、郷土の歴史ブームに沸いた「化政文化」全盛期にあたる。この解析結果はこの入野村の庄屋・原庄左衛門が「わが村の偉人・小野篁」をブランド化し、観光振興（地域プロデュース）を仕掛けるには最高のタイミング。またこの時期は同時に広島藩の公式歴史書『芸藩通志』発表（1825年）の直前期にあたっていて、目的と非常に整合するタイミングと思えるのだ。
　う〜む。ご先祖さまの「知恵」の無敵ぶりに惑乱させられてしまった（笑）。しかしこの事実はさらなる大きなテーマを必然的に浮かび上がらせてくる。まったく手に負えない重低音の連鎖。・・・

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English version⬇

[Takahira Ono, “Uyukawa Shrine”: Confused by the Date Inscribed on the Torii]
I calmed myself down and sorted through the photos I’d taken during my research in a quiet, serene setting, but inwardly, I was flustered by an unexpected new discovery. …

　Now that I’ve settled down a bit, I’ve been organizing the photos I took during my trip, and as I’ve been taking another close look at some photos that had caught my eye, I’ve made some new discoveries.
　Specifically, these are photos I took at the site associated with the legend of Ono no Takamura’s birthplace—a location I visited separately during my trip to Junkō-ji Temple in Irino, Kawachi-chō, Higashi-Hiroshima City, Hiroshima Prefecture, on May 22. I had made a whirlwind day trip there from my lodging in Munakata, Kyushu. In a recent blog post, I mentioned that a monument had been erected at this “Ono no Takamura Birth Bath Pond,” and I had noted the name “Hara Shōzaemon” as the “patron”—a name that might be connected to my family lineage. However, I’ve since discovered that a stone torii has actually been erected at the “Ono no Takamura Birth Bath River Shrine,” and I was able to confirm an inscription, as shown in the second photo above, that serves as its date of construction. There was a date inscription that, at first glance, read “Bun’ei 2.” Based on common sense, the year of the torii’s construction could be interpreted as Bun’ei 2 (1265).
　It is also highly likely that the date of creation for the monument inscribed with the “patron’s” name is the same.
　A date that was somewhat beyond my imagination suddenly appeared right before my eyes. When I wrote my blog post the other day, I did not mention this date notation, marking it as “to be confirmed.” However, if we cross-reference the year Bun’ei 2 (1265) with historical records, it corresponds to the period immediately preceding the famous “Bun’ei Campaign”—the Mongol invasions—and the year a diplomatic letter was delivered from the Mongol Empire.
“Wait, was he already such an influential figure in this region back then that his name was inscribed on a monument?” I found myself wondering.

…So, as I continued my investigation into this photo analysis, it gradually became clear that the part that appeared to read “Bun’ei” was actually “Bunsei.”
This corresponds to the year 1819. This period marked the height of the “Kasei Culture,” when all of Japan was abuzz with a boom in travel, tourism, and local history. These analysis results indicate that this was the perfect timing for Hara Shōzaemon, the village headman of Irino Village, to brand “Ono no Takamura, the Great Man of Our Village” and launch a tourism promotion campaign (regional branding). Furthermore, this period coincided with the immediate run-up to the publication of the Hiroshima Domain’s official history, *Geihan Tsūshi* (1825), making it a timing that aligns perfectly with his objectives.
　Hmm. I’ve been completely bewildered by the invincible “wisdom” of my ancestors (laughs). However, this fact inevitably brings an even larger theme to the surface. A chain of deep, unmanageable bass notes…

Posted on 6月 20th, 2026 by 三木 奎吾
Filed under: 未分類