Shōben-kozō, the boy above the Iya Gorge

photo by メルビル · CC BY-SA 4.0

photo by nor.ed · CC BY-SA 3.0

A statuette on a rock 200 m above the river, a test of courage for the road workers.

At the most winding point of the old Iya road, the statue of a urinating boy stands on a rock ledge about 200 metres above the Iya River, in the gorge, carved into the shape of a ‘hi’ (ひ) over about 10 kilometres of bends. The sculptor Kawasaki Yoshiyuki made it in 1968, inspired by the tradition in which workers and travellers tested themselves by braving the drop to urinate from that spot. The site received two stars from the French Michelin guide in 2009.

Viewpoint over the Iya Gorge (祖谷渓), in the municipality of Miyoshi, distinct both from the Iya vine bridge and from the Ōboke-Koboke gorges, further downstream on the Yoshino River.

ℹ️ Near the Hotel Iya Onsen; car park along the scenic road.

🚉 風呂ノ谷 · in front of the station

Sources: pref.tokushima.lg.jp · tokushimakotomono.com

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