Where students in Kanazawa drew their bows
The Meiji Village Fourth Higher School Martial Arts Hall Museido Archery Hall (明治村第四高等学校武術道場無声堂弓道場, also written Museidō) is a timber archery hall at the Meiji Mura Museum in Inuyama, Aichi Prefecture, built in 1917 for the Fourth Higher School in Kanazawa and listed as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property in 2004.
The complex was known as Museidō, and it housed three disciplines: judo, kendo and kyūdō, Japanese archery. Its original address was Sengoku-chō in the city of Kanazawa, Ishikawa Prefecture. The Fourth Higher School was one of the elite pre-war colleges that fed the imperial universities, and it counts among the predecessors of today's Kanazawa University.
The archery hall does not stand alone. It joins the main hall, which contains the kendo and judo floors, through an earth-floored passage at the entrance. The main hall covers 509 square meters; the archery hall covers 72 square meters. Two rooms with entirely different demands are linked by a single threshold. The Agency for Cultural Affairs registers the main hall and the archery hall separately, each as one structure, and it is the archery hall that this article describes.
The buildings were dismantled in 1969 and rebuilt at the Meiji Mura Museum in 1970. The archery hall now occupies plot 34 in the museum's 4-chōme district.
A Western truss used to make columns disappear
The hall entered the national register of Tangible Cultural Properties on 17 February 2004 under listing number 23-0091, on the criterion that it is a model of its type. It is recorded as one structure: single-storey timber construction, Kirizuma-zukuri gabled roof, Sangawara-buki pantile covering, floor area 72 square meters, with eaves projecting on the side facing the targets.
The most interesting thing about the building is the part you cannot see. The Agency for Cultural Affairs notes that a Western-style roof truss carries the full 5 ken of frontage facing the target range without a single column. Five ken is roughly 9.1 meters. Japanese carpentry of the period would ordinarily have dropped a post somewhere in that run; the imported truss removes the need.
The reason lies in the sport. In kyūdō, archers stand in a line abreast and release toward the targets at the same moment. A post anywhere along that line takes a shooting position out of use. To let a class of students shoot together, the whole frontage had to be clear. An imported piece of structural engineering was put to work on the requirements of a Japanese martial art.
What to look for
The clear span
Stand where the archers stood, if the hall is open on the day you visit, and look toward the targets. The beam runs straight across and nothing interrupts the sightline. Outside, eaves project over the target side, keeping the near end of the shooting lane out of the rain.
Two wall systems on one building
The outer walls are Western-style Shitami-itabari weatherboarding, horizontal boards lapped over one another, with the corner posts left visible. The upper part of each gable end switches systems entirely: Shinkabe framing filled with Shikkui lime plaster, the same finish used on a Japanese storehouse. One building, two carpentry traditions stacked one above the other. The windows come in two kinds, sliding sashes with transoms above them and long low sliding sashes set at the height at which a bow is drawn.
The passage to the main hall
The link between the archery hall and the main hall is that earth-floored entrance passage. Students changing footwear on their way from the kendo and judo floors to the archery floor moved through it. To understand how the two buildings relate, look down at the junction rather than walking around the outside.
The thatched target house
According to the Meiji Mura Museum, the archery hall comes with a thatched target house. The shooting hall carries clay pantiles; the structure that receives the arrows is roofed in thatch instead. A building meant to be hit repeatedly wants a covering that is light and quick to patch.
Visiting
The hall sits at plot 34 in 4-chōme, roughly halfway between the museum's main gate at the south end and the north entrance, so you will be walking either way. The grounds follow the natural contours of a hillside and the paths climb and drop, so allow more time than the distances on the map suggest.
Whether you can go inside varies by day. The Meiji Mura Museum states that some buildings and sections are closed off to prevent accidents, and that repairs occasionally take structures out of view. Check the museum website in advance or the notices posted in the grounds on the day. The exterior repays a look in any case: the contrast between the weatherboarding and the plastered gable, and the reach of the eaves on the target side, are both visible from outside.
Opening hours change with the season. From April through July and in September and October the museum runs 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.; from December through February it runs 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The ticket office closes 30 minutes before the museum. Closure days are set in blocks each month.
Admission is 2,500 yen for adults, 1,500 yen for high school students, and 700 yen each for junior high and elementary school students, with preschool children free. Parking is 1,000 yen for a car and cannot be reserved.
Personal photography needs no application. Tripods, monopods and reflectors are prohibited inside buildings, as is any shoot that occupies a passage or a doorway. Buses run to the museum from the east exit of Meitetsu Inuyama Station, with direct services from Nagoya Station and Sakae; drivers reach it 3 km from the Komaki-higashi interchange on the Chūō Expressway.
- 📍 Plan Your Visit to Aichi
- Find tours, activities & transport passes near Meiji Village Fourth Higher School Martial Arts Hall Museido Archery Hall
- [ Nagoya Castle & Atsuta Shrine History Tours ]
Q&A
- Where is the Meiji Village Fourth Higher School Martial Arts Hall Museido Archery Hall and how do you reach it?
- It stands at Uchiyama 1, Inuyama City, Aichi Prefecture, inside the Meiji Mura Museum at plot 34 in 4-chōme. Buses run from the east exit of Meitetsu Inuyama Station, and direct services also come from Nagoya Station and Sakae. By car, the museum is 3 km from the Komaki-higashi interchange on the Chūō Expressway.
- Can you go inside the Meiji Village Fourth Higher School Martial Arts Hall Museido Archery Hall?
- It depends on the day. The Meiji Mura Museum closes some buildings and sections to prevent accidents, and repair work occasionally puts structures out of view. Check the museum website before your visit or the notices posted in the grounds. The exterior can be seen at any time during opening hours.
- Why does the Meiji Village Fourth Higher School Martial Arts Hall Museido Archery Hall have no columns?
- A Western-style roof truss carries the full 5 ken of frontage facing the targets, about 9.1 meters, without an intermediate post. In kyūdō the archers stand in a line and shoot together, so a column anywhere along that line would take a shooting position out of use. The requirement of the sport dictated the structure.
- How does the Meiji Village Fourth Higher School Martial Arts Hall Museido Archery Hall relate to the main hall?
- Museidō was a martial arts complex covering judo, kendo and archery. The kendo and judo floors occupy the main hall, which covers 509 square meters, while the 72-square-meter archery hall joins it through an earth-floored passage at the entrance. The Agency for Cultural Affairs registers the main hall and the archery hall separately, each as one structure.
- Where was the Meiji Village Fourth Higher School Martial Arts Hall Museido Archery Hall originally built?
- It was built in 1917 at Sengoku-chō in Kanazawa, Ishikawa Prefecture, as the martial arts hall of the Fourth Higher School, one of the predecessor institutions of Kanazawa University. The building was dismantled in 1969 and rebuilt at the Meiji Mura Museum in 1970.
Basic Information
| Name | Meiji Village Fourth Higher School Martial Arts Hall Museido Archery Hall |
|---|---|
| Location | Meiji Mura Museum, Uchiyama 1, Inuyama City, Aichi Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (structure) |
| Year Designated | 2004 (Heisei 16) |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Floor area 72 square meters |
| Owner | Meiji Mura Public Interest Foundation |
| Public Access | Open to the public; viewable by visitors to the Meiji Mura Museum |
References
- National Cultural Properties Database, Meiji Village Fourth Higher School Martial Arts Hall Museido Archery Hall (Agency for Cultural Affairs)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/101/00003857
- National Cultural Properties Database, Meiji Village Fourth Higher School Martial Arts Hall Museido Main Hall (Agency for Cultural Affairs)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/101/00003856
- Cultural Heritage Online, Meiji Village Fourth Higher School Martial Arts Hall Museido Archery Hall
- https://online.bunka.go.jp/heritages/detail/116937
- Meiji Mura Museum, Fourth Higher School Martial Arts Hall Museido
- https://www.meijimura.com/sight/第四高等学校武術道場「無声堂」/
- Meiji Mura Museum, opening calendar
- https://www.meijimura.com/guide/open/
- Meiji Mura Museum, admission charges
- https://www.meijimura.com/guide/price/
- Meiji Mura Museum, photography rules
- https://www.meijimura.com/photography/
Last verified: 2026.09.03