Shirasu Lighthouse

Overview

Shirasu Lighthouse stands on the reef known as Shirasu, west of the island of Ainoshima in the Hibiki Sea off Kokurakita-ku, Kitakyushu, Fukuoka Prefecture. Built with an iron upper section over a stone lower section and painted in a distinctive black-and-white scheme, it has long served as a guiding beacon for the waters north of the Kanmon Strait.

Highlights

• ●Iron-topped, stone-based lighthouse on the Shirasu reef
• ●Black-and-white paint to distinguish it from white sails
• ●Selected as one of Japan's 50 finest lighthouses
• ●Founded through the sole efforts of Iwamatsu Sukezaemon

History

The waters north of the Kanmon Strait are full of shallows and hidden reefs, and shipwrecks occurred frequently there from the Edo period. In the late Edo Bunkyu era, Iwamatsu Sukezaemon, a village headman of nearby Nagahama-ura who had been appointed to a post by the Kokura domain, resolved to build a lighthouse and began the work on his own. The foundation was completed in 1870, but Iwamatsu died in 1872. The project was taken over by the Meiji government, and the first wooden lighthouse was completed in 1873. Originally white, it was repainted black and white in 1876 to be distinguished from white sails, and this scheme was retained even after it was rebuilt into the present iron-and-stone structure.

Map

33.9836, 130.7917 · Wikidata

Suggested itinerary

1. 1Set out by boat from a Kokurakita-ku port toward the Hibiki Sea and Ainoshima
2. 2View the black-and-white form of Shirasu Lighthouse from the sea
3. 3Learn the story of Iwamatsu Sukezaemon and the lighthouse's construction
4. 4Enjoy the scenery of Ainoshima and the surrounding waters

Did you know?

💡 This lighthouse is chosen as one of Japan's 50 finest lighthouses. The story of Iwamatsu Sukezaemon, a mere village headman who poured his own funds and passion into starting its construction, is handed down as a tale of people wishing for the safety of the local seas. The black-and-white paint used to distinguish it from white sails is a unique point of interest.

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