shukuba

thumb|Nakasendō's [[Tsumago-juku]] were staging post stations during the Edo period in Japan, generally located on one of the Edo Five Routes or one of its sub-routes. They were also called shuku-eki (宿駅). These stage stations, or "" developed around them, were places where travelers could rest on their journey around the nation. They were created based on policies for the transportation of goods by horseback that were developed during the Nara and Heian periods.

==History== thumb|Nakasendō's Magome-juku These stations were first established by Tokugawa Ieyasu shortly after the end of the Battle of Sekigahara. The first stations were developed along the Tōkaidō (followed by stations on the Nakasendō and other routes). In 1601, the first of the Tōkaidō's fifty-three stations were developed, stretching from Shinagawa-juku in Edo to Ōtsu-juku in Ōmi Province. Not all the post stations were built at the same time, however, as the last one was built in 1624.