Three narrow valleys indent the pine-tufted Honmoku headland. Around 1887, Hara Zenzaburo, Yokohama's leading silk merchant, built a villa atop the lip of San-no-tani, the third valley from the west. While father drank in the view of Tokyo Bay, the Tanzawa and Hakone ranges, and Mount Fuji, his adopted son and heir, Tomitaro (1868-1939), spun from silk his own vision in the valley.
His afflatus was the pagoda-dotted Nara countryside, and from the ancient capital's region he brought select rocks. In 1906, he opened Sankeien Garden in San-no-tani. Many wealthy men have built gardens; but few have thrown open the gates.
"Sankeien is certainly my property," Sankei said in March 1910. "But scenic beauty should belong to no one. For a single person to horde Creation's blessings would be like a cloud blocking the pure light of the moon. It is a natural duty to open the garden to the public."