One of Kyoto’s three major festivals, the Jidai Matsuri, was held in Kyoto, and for the first time in three years, a procession of 2,000 people dressed in costumes from the Heian to Meiji periods paraded along the Miyakooji Street in autumn.
The Jidai Matsuri began in 1895 to commemorate the 1,100th anniversary of the relocation of the capital to Heian-kyo, and is one of the three major festivals in Kyoto, along with the Aoi Matsuri in May and the Gion Matsuri in July.
The festival is particularly popular for the “Jidai Matsuri Procession,” in which 2,000 people dressed in costumes from various periods between the Heian and Meiji periods make their way along a 4.5-kilometer route from the Kyoto Imperial Palace to Heian Shrine.
The procession was organized in the form of a historical procession, with a drum and fife corps from the Meiji era (1868-1912) in the lead, Ryoma Sakamoto, who was active at the end of the Edo period (1603-1912), Princess Wamiya of the Edo period (1603-1912), who wore bright twelve-piece kimono, and warlord Nobunaga Oda of the Warring States period (1868-1912), among others.
Many people gathered along the street to watch the procession, occasionally applauding and taking pictures.
A third-year college student from Kyotanabe City, Kyoto Prefecture, commented, “Seeing the costumes and horses of the time up close made me feel as if I had gone back in time. I was glad to see the Jidai Matsuri in person, as I have not been able to do anything that is typical of Kyoto due to the ongoing Corona disaster.
【In front of Kenreimon gate of Kyoto Imperial Palace】
