S P O T ／ SPOT-218

Onioshidashi Volcanic Lava Field Park

鬼押出し園おにおしだしえん

A managed landscape park preserving the solidified lava field produced by the catastrophic eruption of Mt. Asama on 5 August 1783 (Tenmei 3). The eruption generated a lava flow approximately 5 km in length, 1–2 km in width, and up to 30 m in thickness that covered the surrounding plateau. The vernacular name Onioshidashi — literally 'demons (oni) being expelled/pushed out' — reflects a local folk interpretation in which the tumultuous, irregularly shaped basalt formations were likened to a horde of oni being driven out from the volcanic interior. The 1783 Asama eruption is also historically significant for the associated pyroclastic surge and lahar that destroyed the village of Kanbara, killing over 1,500 residents; interpretive materials within the park contextualize both the geological event and its human consequences. The park, operated by Prince Hotels and Resorts, is located at approximately 1,350 m elevation on the Asama Highland and contains a Buddhist memorial hall (Senjuzan Kannon-do, a branch temple of Kan'eiji in Ueno, Tokyo) erected to commemorate the eruption victims.