Regions & prefectures
JapanRegions & prefectures
Ishikawa
The art city spared by the bombs, its lacquerware, its geisha and 99 % of Japan’s gold leaf.
- Capital
- Kanazawa
- Status
- Prefecture
- Region
- Chūbu
- Must-see
- Kenroku-en garden
- Local specialty
- Gold leaf, Wajima lacquer, jibuni
Kanazawa, seat of the Maeda clan and the second-richest domain of Edo-period Japan, invested in the arts what it could not invest in arms. Spared the 1945 bombing, it kept its geisha districts, samurai houses and Kenroku-en garden. The Noto peninsula to the north lives on Wajima lacquer and sea salt, and is recovering from the earthquake of 1 January 2024.
What to see there
Places, dishes and traditions tied to this territory.
In the magazine
Articles that cover this topic.