Bicchu 33 Kannon Pilgrimage

     Bicchu 33 Kannon Pilgrimage was organized by Yanai Kanzaemon Shigenori in the late 18th century.  The Yanai Family used to belong to the Fujiwara Clan and live in Kanto Region until the end of the Kamakura Period.  At the beginning of the Muromachi Period in the middle of the 14th century, they moved to Yanai, Suo Province, and since then called themselves Yanai.  Before the second half of the 16th century, they moved to Matsuyama (Takahasi City today), Bicchu Province.  Since those days, they started producing dan paper, the most high-grade quality paper with the crepe texture made from paper mulberries.  Under the guidance of Kobori Masakazu (1579-1647), who is better known as Kobori Enshu, a notable artist, the family improved their papermaking.  Yanai Kanzaemon Shigetsugu (1590-1641) offered dan paper to the third Tokugawa shogun, Iemitsu (1604-1651), in 1626, was titled Mino-no-jo (the third provincial officer in Mino Province) by Empres Meisho (1624-1696) in 1633, and established the privilege position in producing dan paper in Bicchu Province.  Since his days, the heads of the Yanai Family succeeded to the hereditary name Kanzaemon.