manhole covers

In my trips to Japan I developed a habit of capturing images of manholes. To me they are the most overlooked and under-appreciated beauty of everyday objects. Of all I think the ones in Japan are most prolific and artistic.

the relative modern functional objects do not detract from this beautiful stone entrance - in fact they complement it

in harmony with another entrance that suffered from some neglect in upkeep

this city of beppu (famous for it's warm springs) is so proud they colored it

to wrap up the artful manhole covers please enjoy this world famous rock garden that long predated the term minimalist in the west