Built by Ishikawa Jozan (1584-1672) after he was exiled from Edo by the Tokugawas, this small garden served as Ishikawa's refuge to study tea, philosophy and garden design. He moved to this iste in the hill sof northeastern Kyoto in 1636. It was not designed in the contemporary tea garden style, though it has changed somewhat from the original. It's memorable features include a large camellia tree, a bamboo forest framing the entrance, karikomi azaleas, maples, a shishi-odoshi, and its blending of interior and exterior spaces. The garden uses a common arrangement of dry gravel in the foreground, clipped karikomi azaleas in the midground and a verdant hillside the background.
His house consists of a kitchen and living quarters, reading rooms, living room and a small tower built for mooon-viewing. The main foyer basts portraits of 36 famous poets and lends the name 'Shisendo' or 'House of the Great Poets'.
