Overview
- Yamagishi Miki, 57, the fifth head of the Tokugawa Yoshinobu family, is negotiating to hand the civil-law authority over ancestral rites to Ueno Toshogu as part of a grave-closing plan.
- If approved, the transfer would shift responsibility for family rituals and management of the Yanaka Cemetery graves to the shrine.
- Ueno Toshogu has signaled willingness to accept the role and since 2021 has assisted with plant maintenance and cleaning as upkeep pressures grew.
- The graves occupy about 990 square meters within Yanaka Cemetery on Kaneiji temple property, and Yoshinobu’s tomb is a Tokyo-designated historic site.
- Formal transfer will require coordination with Kaneiji, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government, and Taito Ward to address land ownership and heritage requirements.