Nice small map titled Lac Biva, from wood engraving with fine detail and clear impression, approx. size with margins is 18.5 x 16.5 cm. From La Nouvelle Géographie universelle, la terre et les hommes, 19 vol. (1875-94), great work of Elisee Reclus. Cartographer is Charles Perron.

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Kyōto

city, seat of Kyōto fu (urban prefecture), west-central Honshu island, Japan. It is located some 30 miles (50 km) northeast of the industrial city of Ōsaka and about the same distance from Nara, another ancient centre of Japanese culture. Gently sloping downward from north to south, the city averages 180 feet (55 metres) above sea level. Kyōto fu is at the centre of Kinki chihō (region). The city is one of the centres (with nearby Ōsaka and Kōbe) of the Keihanshin Industrial Zone, the second largest urban and industrial agglomeration in Japan.

The capital of Japan for more than 1,000 years (from 794 to 1868), Kyōto (literally, “Capital City”) has been called a variety of names through the centuries—Heian-kyō (“Capital of Peace and Tranquillity”), Miyako (“The Capital”), and Saikyō (“Western Capital”), its name after the Meiji Restoration (1868) when the imperial household moved to Tokyo. The contemporary phrase sekai no Kyōto (“the world's Kyōto”) reflects the reception of Japanese culture abroad and Kyōto's own attempt to keep up with the times. Nevertheless, Kyōto is the centre of traditional Japanese culture and of Buddhism, as well as of fine textiles and other Japanese products. The deep feeling of the Japanese people for their culture and heritage is represented in their special relationship with Kyōto—all Japanese try to go there at least once in their lives, with almost a third of the country's population visiting the city annually. Several of the historic temples and gardens of Kyōto were collectively added as a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1994. Area 320 square miles (828 square km). Pop. (2006 est.) 1,472,511.

Lake Biwa

Japanese Biwa-ko

largest freshwater lake in Japan, located in Shiga ken (prefecture), west-central Honshu. Approximately 40 miles (64 km) long from north to south, the lake covers an area of 259 square miles (672 square km). Its name refers to the biwa, a Japanese musical instrument that the lake resembles in shape. The lake occupies a structural depression and is fed by small rivers flowing from the encircling mountains. The sole outlet, the Yodo River, flows from Lake Biwa's southern tip, past Seta southwest to Ōsaka Bay. Deepest water of 338 feet (103 metres) is in the northwest corner, with depths of more than 200 feet (60 metres) common along the west coast. The lake's surface rises as high as 10 feet (3 metres) in spring because of melting snow and spring rains and in autumn because of typhoon rains. Lake Biwa is a breeding ground for freshwater fish, including trout, and supports a pearl culture industry. It also serves as a reservoir for the cities of Kyōto and Ōtsu and is a valuable resource for nearby textile industries.

In early Japanese history, Lake Biwa was a principal avenue of movement between the Sea of Japan and the Inland Sea and later facilitated the economic development of the Hanshin (Ōsaka-Kōbe) Industrial Region. Known for its scenic beauty and for the temples atop Mount Hiei, Lake Biwa has been the subject of much Japanese poetry and is one of Japan's greatest tourist attractions.

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