In the 1630s, a series of proclamations closed the country’s borders, marking the beginning of the period now known as <i>sakoku</i> (‘locking the country’) or sometimes <i>kaikin</i> (‘sea-restriction’). Non-Japanese-citizens were not permitted on Japanese soil; potential violators were warned that they would be subject to capital punishment. Nor were Japanese citizens allowed to leave Japan. But occasionally a group of Japanese citizens left Japan by mistake. The 15-metre-long ship was left far from shore without a rudder or a mast, meaning that there was no way to steer it.