A JAPANESE GARDEN IN SCOTLAND DESIGNED BY A JAPANESE WOMAN IN 1908 (明治の日本人女性が設計したスコットランドの日本庭園)

Several months ago, Itsuko-san, my classmate of English conversation class, gave me a newspaper-clipping introducing a Japanese Garden designed in early 20th century.

In the article, it was written that a Japanese woman who learned horticulture at Studley College (Warwickshire) in England designed a Japanese garden at Cowden Castle in Scotland in 1908.  Her name is Taki Handa.  She was born in 1871 at Kurume City in Kyusyu Island.  Kurume City is very close to my home town.  I was really surprised to know that a Japanese woman made a Japanese garden in Scotland more than 100 years ago!

I researched about this amazing story, and I found a  report written by her granddaughter in Japanese (unfortunately this report is not available on internet).  She was a teacher of English and Horticulture of a woman's collage in Kyoto, a mother of children, a wife of an army surgeon and a manager of a fruit farm.

Two papers about her are available on internet 

 

1) Revisiting Japanese horticulturist, Taki Handa's studying Britain in early 20th century: family history and life history / life geography (園芸家半田たきの明治後期の英国留学  家族史とライフヒストリー／ライフジオグラフィーの視点から)

2) スコットランド・コーデン城日本庭園の成立について

I found a English web page (here) which introduces the Japanese Garden of Cowden Castle in Scotland.

If you are interested in her, please visit web site shown above.  You can look at many photos of the woman, the garden and related people.

English Garden