Abstract
This paper discusses on the design works of Masayoshi Kabashima (1878-1949), one of the famous bridge engineers in the modern period of Japan, for the pourpose of showing characteristics of his design thinking and examines where we should place the significance of his design methodology in the modern history of Japanese bridge design. The most important works of Kabashima is urban bridges design in Tokyo city, Kaji-bashi bridge, Gohuku-bashi bridge etc. In these works Kabashima showed the design method to create bridge appearances or landscape based on the understanding of the placeness which is reached by reading the urban context. The usual design method of urban bridges in Meiji era was to put some ornaments on bridge structures like plate girders or trusses, so his methodology based on the values of urban spaces and landscapes not on only ornaments can be placed as an epoch in the modern history of Japanese bridge design.
