The historic castle of Akita city, Kubota-jō was founded in 1602 by Satake Yoshinobu on the top of Shinmei-yama. Also known as Yatome-jō or Kakon-jō, Kubota Castle was unique in that it never had a central donjon - a rarity among Japanese castles. It did, however, once have eight yagura - or watchtowers - along its walls, only one of which exists today (pictured - but actually a reconstruction from 1989). The original castle structures were partially dismantled during the Meiji Restoration, before a fire in 1880 gutted the site and the land was converted to a park. Although one castle gate has been recently rebuilt, only a tiny guardhouse survives from the old days.