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| Sento took the form of a business with the first bathing charges being introduced in the Azuchi-Momoyama period (1573-1598). The 'Sozoro Monogatari' (Meandering Tales) refers to an Edo sento founder as follows, "In the summer of the 19th year of Tensho (1591), a man known as Yoichi of Ise established a sento-buro besides the bridge at Zenigame-bashi. The bathing fee was one Eiraku-sen...". The Zenigame-bashi of old was the area around modern Nihon-bashi, Tokyo. Meanwhile, in Osaka, it was recorded that the first 'Furo-ya' came into existence the previous year, in Tensho 18 (1590), and the style of public baths that we know as the sento of today were formed at that time, developed separately and known as 'Yu-ya' in eastern Japan, and 'Furo-ya' in western Japan. |