70319-0001 - Otsu and Lake Biwa

Otsu City and Lake Biwa in Shiga Prefecture as seen from Miidera (三井寺), a Buddhist temple also known as Enjoji (園城寺). The canal is the Lake Biwa Waterway (琶湖疏水, Biwako Sosui) designed by Sakuro Tanabe to generate electricity and supply drinking water for Kyoto City, as well as facilitate transportation. This photo is believed to have been taken shortly after the opening of the canal in 1890 (Meiji 23).