Aoshima-jinja Shrine is a Shinto shrine found on Aoshima Island, a small island with a 1.5 km circumference, and is famous as the setting for the Umisachi Yamasachi myth. This island was a sacred location where no-one could enter without permission. Only permitted to set foot on the island were public officials and Shinto priests. It was only during a festival held every year that commoners had permission to travel to the island. Only after 1737 were the travel restrictions relaxed, allowing unrestricted travel to the island. Since this island was guarded as a sanctuary for many years, many plants and rocks remain, which helped in making this island a natural monument of Japan.