Miyajima History and Folklore Museum: Exhibition Room A 宮島歴史民俗資料館 各展示館概要 （展示館 A）

The saws were used by local lumberjacks, who in the Edo period (1603–1868) had to be careful not to fell the wrong tree. The daimyo lord of the Hiroshima domain owned large swaths of the forests of Miyajima, and citizens were strictly prohibited from cutting down most trees on the island. This is true even today, but for a different reason, since Miyajima is now a natural conservation zone. There are fewer farming tools on display than saws, mainly because agriculture was entirely prohibited on Miyajima until the Meiji era (1868–1912). The island itself was worshipped as the abode of the divine, making farming taboo. Agriculture never really took off here, even after the centuries-old ban was lifted in the late 1800s. While small fields have been developed, damage caused by deer and wild boars has discouraged farmers.