By the 12th century the gate had fallen into disrepair. The south end of Kyoto had chronic floods that made the land in the area undesirable.
The gate became known as a place where people abandoned unwanted babies. Corpses were also abandoned at the gate. It became a hideout for criminals. Worse, it was said to be inhabited by a Japanese demon — Ibaraki Doji.
The gate was finally pulled down in the 15th century and it's stones used to build Koriyama Castle. Today all that remains is this stone marker in a children's playground.
Rashomon was remembered by a 15th century noh play of the same title that's still performed today.
It was also featured in the short story Rashomon (1915) by Ryunosuke Akutagawa. The story was the author's first attempt at writing. It was written while he was still a student. Nonetheless, it has become one of the best known works of Japanese literature.
Two short stories by Akutagawa: "In the Grove" and "Rashomon" were the basis of the screen play for the brilliant 1950 film by director Akira Kurosawa (also tittle Rashomon).
In the movie, Rashomon symbolizes the decay of society.
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