Siebold’s Footbath

This footbath, as well as the nearby Siebold no Yu spa, is named for the German physician and botanist Philipp Franz von Siebold (1796–1866), who came to Japan in 1823. He collected and took notes on the flora, fauna, and folk culture of Japan, based on which he wrote several influential early modern works about the country.

In 1826, Siebold made the journey along the Nagasaki Highway from the port of Nagasaki to Kokura in northern Kyushu. Ureshino was a bustling spa town at the time, with more than double the number of hot-spring inns it has today. As Siebold passed through the area, it is believed that he stopped at this footbath to rest his feet in the hot water. The quality of the spring water piqued his interest, and he was one of the first to collect data on the waters of Ureshino.

Siebold’s Footbath marks the end of the Kyushu Olle Ureshino Course, offering tired travelers a chance to soothe their feet in the hot-spring water as Siebold did.