First of three parts Nihonbashi -- "Bridge of Japan" -- is the most famous and important bridge of Edo Period Japan. Designated by Shogun Ieyasu in 1603 as the hub of the country's highway network, with all distances measured from there, the small wooden structure with a 50-meter span was where journeys from the then political capital started or finished. In those days, too, when travel routes doubled as "information highways" constantly traversed by messengers, news of all kinds arrived here first and spread from here.

The river under the bridge, originally called the Hirakawa but renamed then as the Nihonbashigawa, became the main artery of the city's waterborne network of goods-distribution routes. As well, wealthy merchants from Kyoto and Osaka opened branches along the river to capitalize on Edo's booming economy, and in time these led to the development of sophisticated financial and business operations in the area. Meanwhile, steady employment in the heart of the city also attracted craftsmen and laborers from surrounding provinces.

The Edo artist Hasegawa Settan (1778-1843) successfully conveys the vibrant, dynamic image of Nihonbashi and its environs in the woodblock print shown here. With a marvelous eye for detail, he depicts the handsome warehouses and the arched bridge packed with people, while boats busily ply the river beneath in a scene so vividly rendered as to almost capture the buzzes and shouts from the crowds.