Overview
- Beginning around 9 a.m., a shinkō-retsu of about 400 people centered on two mikoshi enshrining Emperors Kanmu and Kōmei departed Heian Jingu for Kyoto Gyoen.
- By around noon, light rain fell as the assembled groups formed a roughly 2-kilometer parade of about 2,000 participants carrying flags with era names and returning to Heian Jingu.
- Reenactors portrayed figures from the Heian period through the Meiji Restoration in historically researched costumes, with period elements such as horse-drawn carriages.
- The procession included portrayals of well-known figures such as Sakamoto Ryoma, Oda Nobunaga, and Murasaki Shikibu.
- The Jidai Matsuri, one of Kyoto’s three major festivals, originated in 1895 with the founding of Heian Jingu and this year marked its 130th iteration.