in an uninhabited islet located in the center of Ōfunato Bay, on the Sanriku Coast of Japan. It has been designated a National Place of Scenic Beauty and

Natural Monument A natural monument is a natural or cultural feature of outstanding or unique value because of its inherent rarity, representative of aesthetic qualities, or cultural significance. They can be natural geological and geographical features such as w ...

since 1946.

Overview

The islet, which has a land area of , a circumference of 0.9 km and a height of 25 meters, is located within the municipality of

Ōfunato is a city located in Iwate Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 35,452, and a population density of 110 persons per km2 in 14,895 households. The total area of the city is . Geography Ōfunato is located in southeastern ...

Iwate Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku region of Honshu. It is the second-largest Japanese prefecture (behind Hokkaido) at , with a population of 1,165,886 (as of July 1, 2023). Iwate Prefecture borders Aomori Pre ...

. It is covered in a dense forest of maple and

Japanese red pine ''Pinus densiflora'', also called the Japanese red pine, the Japanese pine, or Korean red pine, is a species of pine tree native to East Asia and Siberia. In China, the plant is known as 赤松 (pinyin: chì sōng, literally "red pine"). Distrib ...

, such that in autumn the red leaves and red tree trunks give the island the appearance of being made of

red coral Precious coral, or red coral, is the common name given to a genus of marine corals, ''Corallium''. The distinguishing characteristic of precious corals is their durable and intensely colored red or pink-orange skeleton, which is used for maki ...

. It was designated as a national scenic spot for its beautiful scenery. The island was owned by Shibuya Kasuke, a local businessman who made his fortune importing gunpowder and munitions during the

Meiji period The was an era of Japanese history that extended from October 23, 1868, to July 30, 1912. The Meiji era was the first half of the Empire of Japan, when the Japanese people moved from being an isolated feudal society at risk of colonizatio ...

. It was donated to Ōfunato village during the Taishō period for use as a public park. The island suffered from damage caused by

tsunami A tsunami ( ; from , ) is a series of waves in a water body caused by the displacement of a large volume of water, generally in an ocean or a large lake. Earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and underwater explosions (including detonations, ...

in the

1933 Sanriku earthquake The occurred on the Sanriku coast of the Tōhoku region of Honshū, Japan on March 2 with a moment magnitude of 8.4. The associated tsunami caused widespread devastation. Earthquake The epicenter was located offshore, east of the city of ...

and the

1960 Valdivia earthquake The 1960 Valdivia earthquake and tsunami () or the Great Chilean earthquake (''Gran terremoto de Chile'') occurred on 22 May 1960. Most studies have placed it at 9.5–9.6 on the moment magnitude scale, while some studies have placed the magnitu ...

, and in the

2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami On 11 March 2011, at 14:46:24 Japan Standard Time, JST (05:46:24 UTC), a 9.0–9.1 Submarine earthquake, undersea megathrust earthquake occurred in the Pacific Ocean, east of the Oshika Peninsula of the Tōhoku region. It lasted approx ...

References

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External links

Cultural Treasures of Iwate Prefecture
Islands of Iwate Prefecture Places of Scenic Beauty Ōfunato, Iwate Tourist attractions in Iwate Prefecture

Overview

See also

References

External links