Nihonbashi, Where Tokyo Began to Flow
Modern Nihonbashi is a district of movement: office workers, shoppers, visitors, centuries-old stores, new buildings, and streets that still feel connected to Tokyo’s commercial heart. That flow began in Edo. As Tokugawa Ieyasu developed Edo into a city linked with the whole country, he chose Nihonbashi as the starting point of the Five Highways. Roads radiated outward, while people and goods gathered inward. Fish from the waters, textiles from merchants, daily necessities, news, and travelers all helped turn Nihonbashi into a symbol of Edo’s prosperity. The area’s importance was not only practical. Some accounts say its position also carried symbolic meaning, as a carefully chosen point meant to anchor and protect the city. Today, Nihonbashi continues to evolve through redevelopment while preserving historic shops and buildings. It remains a place where Tokyo’s oldest urban logic can still be felt: gather, connect, transform, and move forward. be felt: gather, connect, transform, and move forward.
[Image Source]
- Top:ColBase
（https://colbase.nich.go.jp/collection_items/tnm/A-10569-3113?locale=ja） - Bottom:https://archive.library.metro.tokyo.lg.jp/da/detail?tilcod=0000000003-00008133
