Rebuilding Cultural Symbol of OgatsuHayama Shrine Frame-Raising Ceremony

Time: March 28, 2015 (Saturday) 15:00-16:00
Location: Hayama Shrine (Ogatsu, Ishinomaki, Miyagi Prefecture)

The Nippon Foundation has been supporting the rebuilding of the Hayama Shrine, which is considered to be the cultural symbol of the town of Ogatsu but was completely destroyed by the tsunami triggered by the Great East Japan Earthquake and. Construction has been proceeding, and a frame-raising ceremony will be held to mark the installation of the ridge beam, the top portion of the shrine’s roof.

The Nippon Foundation established the Traditional Arts Relief Fund in June 2011 with the aim of restoring traditional arts that suffered numerous types of damage in the area affected by the earthquake. The fund has provided a total of ¥1,168 million of support to 180 shrines and traditional arts organizations in Iwate, Miyagi, and Fukushima prefectures for the purchase of items including portable shrines and floats, taiko drums, and costumes.

The Hayama Shrine is the site of the performance of the Ogatsu Hoin Kagura, a local Shinto ritual dance that has been designated as an important intangible folk-culture asset, with the stage created by removing the main building’s sliding doors. The shrine has therefore played a central role in the preservation of this local kagura dance, but this building and the storehouse for the masks and costumes were destroyed by the tsunami. The Nippon Foundation therefore decided in April 2013 to use the fund to support the reconstruction of the main building. This was the first use of the fund for this purpose, and ¥140 million was disbursed.

In addition to the ceremonial raising of the ridgepole, Shinto rituals will be performed and mochi rice cakes will be distributed.

Photo
Damaged Hayama Shrine

* The Traditional Arts Relief Fund was established with the proceeds from the sale of a musical instrument donated by the Nippon Music Foundation. The famous Lady Blunt Stradivarius violin, which the Nippon Music Foundation owned at the time, was sold at auction to support reconstruction from the Great East Japan Earthquake. The winning bid was £8.75 million (approximately ¥1,168 million), and the entire amount was donated to the Nippon Foundation for Tohoku relief.

Time
March 28, 2015 (Saturday) 15:00-16:00
Location
Hayama Shrine grounds (Ohama 6-2, Ogatsu, Ishinomaki City, Miyagi Prefecture)

Contact

Public Relations Section, Communications Department
The Nippon Foundation

E-mail
cc@ps.nippon-foundation.or.jp