溜池
Tameikeためいけ
the reservoir pond
- 溜tame — to collect / store (water)
- 池ike — pond
The pond was filled in 137 years ago. The name stayed. During subway construction, workers found a boat buried under the intersection — the lake never really left.
In 1606, retainers of lord Asano dammed a river here to create early Edo's reservoir — a 1.4km lake that doubled as the castle's outer moat and became a famous scenic spot. It was drained and filled by 1889. Today the pond survives only as the name of an intersection and a subway station.
Modern proof
During subway construction, workers found a boat buried in the old pond bed (preserved at Akasaka Library).
sourceThe Tameike intersection still sits in a hollow, lower than its surroundings.
Sources
- 東京都地質調査業協会 技術ノートNo.39 (溜池の履歴・舟の発見)[technical]
- 東京都立図書館『江戸名所図会』溜池[primary]