It is said that the origin of bathhouses in Edo was "Yuya," or bathhouse attached to a temple, in the late Edo Period. The customs and fashions of the Edo Period are depicted in "Morisada Manko" that was written by Morisada Kitagawa in 1853, and it says that many bathhouses in Edo were segregated by gender, and that men and women bathed together in the Kansai district. Bathing custom was introduced to Japan in the 6th century. Also, it is said to have originated in "Mokuyoku," or ritual purification in Buddhism that became widespread through Prince Shotoku's introduction policy. Therefore, one of "Sichido-garan," or seven standard buildings of a major Buddhist temple complex, is a bathhouse. It is thought that Mokuyoku at temples originated in "Seyoku," or an act of charity to invite common people to take free baths, which was associated with missionary work of Buddhism, carried out by Empress Komyo (710-760) who encouraged building of provincial temples across the country. Therefore, it turns out that the present bathhouses' building style that gives rise to nostalgic feeling is "Miyazukuri," or temple building style, which is also discerned from a bathing scene depicted in "Ippen Shonin Eden (1299)" (owned by Kankiko-ji Temple). (continued in the lower column)

 Although many present-day bathhouses were established after the Meiji Period and most of the buildings were built in the early Showa Period, "Akebono-yu" in Edogawa City was established in 1773, and "Konparu-yu," which is located on Konparu Street in Ginza, Chuo City, was established in the Bunkyu Period (1861 to 1863). It is said that the street was named "Konparu" because the head of the Konparu school of Noh farce lived around there in the Edo Period.