As cities evolve, they often begin to resemble one another, shaped by familiar patterns of development. Yet some places retain a character of their own—and continue to be chosen, generation after generation. Ochanomizu is one of them. View of the Kanda River and railway tracks from Hijiri Bridge The area around JR Ochanomizu Station is defined by its complex terrain. With landmarks like Hijiri Bridge and the steep slopes running along the Kanda River, the neighborhood offers a vivid sense of Tokyo’s layered geography. Simply walking through it, you begin to understand just how intricate the city really is. And then, along those slopes overlooking the river valley, an unexpected scene unfolds. Shops with walls covered entirely in guitars. Showcases filled with vintage brass instruments. Out front, young musicians pick up instruments and play—faces serious, completely absorbed in the moment. Even today, Ochanomizu remains one of the largest and most concentrated musical instrume...
Step into the grounds of Tomioka Hachiman Shrine in Monzen-Nakachō, and you’ll notice a striking statue on your left.
A top-knotted man stands poised to take a step forward, wearing tightly wrapped gaiters and holding a staff fitted with a circular surveying plate.
In recent years, this figure—the man immortalized in bronze—has been experiencing an unexpected, quietly growing revival on social media.
His steady yet strangely romantic life story has begun to resonate with a new generation.
That man is 伊能忠敬 Ino Tadataka.
A Brief Look at His Life
Born in 1745 in what is now Sawara, Chiba Prefecture, Ino married into the Ino merchant family and revived its struggling business in sake brewing and rice brokerage.
At 36, he became village headman, and during the Great Tenmei Famine he used his personal wealth to support the villagers—famously leaving zero famine deaths.
By the time he retired at 49, he had amassed an impressive fortune .Yet his life truly shines after retirement.
Captivated by astronomy, he began studying on his own before apprenticing under Takahashi Yoshitoki, a leading Edo astronomer.
Not long after, he received a monumental assignment from the shogunate:
“Create an accurate map of Japan.”
Beginning at the age of 55, Ino spent the next 17 years walking roughly 40,000 km along Japan’s coastlines.
He continued surveying until just before his death at 73.
His disciples later completed the work, producing the now-legendary “Complete Map of the Coasts of Great Japan” (Ino Map).
Why His Achievement Was Extraordinary
● Accuracy ahead of its time
His latitude measurements differ from modern values by only about 0.2%.
European cartographers later praised their precision.
● Japan was actually measured on foot
From Hokkaido to Kyushu, and even Yakushima and Tanegashima, Ino’s 10 major surveying expeditions covered virtually the entire coastline.
● The scale was unprecedented
More than 200 large, medium, and small map sheets were produced, and they were so reliable that they served as foundational maps well into the Meiji era.
Why Ino Tadataka Is Trending Now
Although he’s always been a name in textbooks, he was never considered a pop-culture “favorite.”
But on social media, a semi-joking yet genuinely admiring sentiment has taken root:
“Ino Tadataka lived the life I want.”
The appeal comes from his so-called “two-lives-in-one” career.
After succeeding as a merchant, he switched fields entirely in his fifties—an age considered elderly at the time—and eventually completed a national project.
This “lifelong productivity” resonates deeply with modern Japanese facing extended careers and uncertainty after retirement.
Moreover, reskilling has become a major buzzword in the business world, and Ino’s dramatic leap from commerce to astronomy makes him an ideal symbol of learning later in life.
Street-Walking Culture in the Smartphone Age
Another driving force behind the Ino boom is the rise of walking culture shaped by smartphones:
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The “gamification of walking” sparked by Pokémon GO
In the past few years, new trends have appeared:
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Blank-map apps where users fill in areas they’ve visited
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GPS art created from walking routes
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Challenge posts like “I walked the entire Yamanote Line today”
A new cycle of
walk → record → visualize → share
has become a popular lifestyle.
Within this movement, a loose online community known as #伊能忠敬界隈 (“Ino Tadataka-kaiwai”) has emerged.
People post their walking logs, photos of Ino-related sites, or simply appreciate his journey.
His method—walking to understand the land—aligns uncannily well with the culture of smartphone-era urban exploration.
Even “Ino Walk,” a long-distance event tracing his routes, has gained momentum as part of an eco-minded walking trend.
Why His Statue Stands in Monzen-Nakachō
Ino spent his retirement years in Fukagawa Kuroe-chō (now Monzen-Nakachō 1-chōme), and this became his base for surveying trips.
Before each expedition, he reportedly visited Tomioka Hachiman Shrine to pray for safety.
Monzen-Nakachō, in other words, is where his second life truly began.
About the Statue
The statue was erected in 2000 to mark the 200th anniversary of the start of his survey expeditions.
It depicts Ino with his surveying staff, and beside it stands Japan’s first third-order triangulation point under the modern geodetic system.
It also serves as a GPS reference point—making the site a symbolic crossroads of history and technology.
A Modern Significance
Standing beside the great torii of Tomioka Hachiman Shrine, the statue serves both as a landmark marking his residence and map-office site, and as a local hub of historical education.
It is also the starting point of the Ino Walk.
In today’s smartphone-driven walking culture, Ino’s legacy finds new relevance.
The physical act of walking that once produced Japan’s first scientific map now connects him to a generation rediscovering the joys of moving on foot.
He has become, unexpectedly yet fittingly, a symbol of the Walking Era.
Take a step into the city with curiosity, and you too may find yourself joining the quiet, growing world of the Ino Tadataka-kaiwai.
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