Kurayashiki Inari Shrine

This Inari shrine sits within a residential neighborhood of Fujinomiya, in what was once the Ōmiya district. The area name Kurayashiki seems to come from the storehouses (kurayashiki) built in the castle town of Ōmiya Castle, which served as the residence of the Fuji Grand Priest family.

According to excavations, Ōmiya Castle (the site of the former residence of the Fuji Grand Priests) was in use from the early twelfth century until its abandonment in 1582 (Tenshō 10). During the late thirteenth century, the site became a square residence bordered by earthworks and a moat, and several moats were added around it by the mid-sixteenth century. Eventually, it developed into a castle structured with a main enclosure and a second enclosure arranged in a line, while a combined castle and shrine town featuring storehouses, townhouses, and the Kanda market grew up around it. Researchers conducted four rounds of excavations between 1984 and 1998, covering roughly 3,700 square metres. Below the residence, they also uncovered a fifth- to seventh-century Kofun period village that contained the remains of twenty-two pit dwellings.

Many of the recovered items are ceramics imported from China, such as celadon and white porcelain, including wares from the Longquan kilns. These artifacts show that the Grand Priest was also a high-ranking warrior who could obtain such goods. Near the end of the Sengoku period, Ōmiya Castle aligned with the Imagawa and is said to have held off three attacks by the Takeda army. Even so, it was surrendered in 1569 (Eiroku 12) through the mediation of the Hōjō. After the Fuji family submitted to the Takeda, the castle was repaired under the direction of Takeda retainers such as Hara Masatane.

The current shrine site in the Kurayashiki district is said to be where the castle’s main gate once stood. The plaque on the stone torii reads “Inari Ōkami”, with vermilion torii and the main hall standing beyond it.