🏮 Boro Ichi

ボロ市

Setagaya, Tokyo (Boro-ichi Street and Surroundings Near Setagaya Daikan Yashiki) · Every year on 15–16 January and 15–16 December

Food stalls

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The Setagaya Boro-ichi is a flea market held near the Setagaya Daikanshiki in Setagaya Ward, Tokyo, on Boro-ichi-dori and organized by the Setagaya Boro-ichi Preservation Society. It takes place every year on January 15 and 16 and December 15 and 16, with nearly 700 stalls selling old clothes, antiques, secondhand books, plants, food, and more, attracting close to 200,000 visitors each day. A signal gun is fired to mark the start and end of the market each day. Its origins date back to 1578, to a free market under Setagaya Castle established by a rakuichi edict issued by Hojo Ujimasa. After the fall of the Hojo clan, it continued as a year-end market, changing into a market for farm tools, and after the adoption of the Gregorian calendar in the Meiji era, it came to be held in January as well. In its peak years in the early Showa era, around 2,000 stalls were set up, and in 1994 and 2007 it was designated an intangible folk cultural property by Setagaya Ward and Tokyo, respectively. A daikan procession reenacting the inspections of the market by Edo-period daikan has been held roughly every five years since 1968, and daikan mochi (three kinds: sweet bean paste, soy flour, and spicy grated radish), a specialty available only at the venue, is popular. In addition, the Setagaya Ward Local History Museum at the site holds an exhibition on the history of the Boro-ichi, introducing its history through related materials.

Getting there

A short walk from Setagaya Station or Kamimachi Station on the Tokyu Setagaya Line. The venue is on the street commonly known as Boro-ichi-dori near the Setagaya Daikanshiki in Setagaya 1-chome, Setagaya Ward.