A Shrine Within the Shrine
Shinmei Shrine Kuden (神明社宮殿, Shinmeisha Kuden) is a gilded miniature shrine building kept inside the Main Hall of Yoshizawa Shinmei Shrine in Yoshizawa, Yurihonjo City, Akita Prefecture; it was made in 1883 and registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on 9 June 2004.
A kuden is a small building in its own right, placed in the Naijin inner sanctuary of a main hall to house the object in which the deity resides. Think of it as a cabinet that takes the form of architecture. The Shinmei Shrine Kuden is timber, single storey, with a board roof and a building area of 2 square metres. The Agency for Cultural Affairs registered it as a building rather than as an item of furnishing, and it is the smallest of the seven entries at the shrine.
It dates from ten years after 1873, when the shrine removed its Buddhist images and became a Shinmeisha once more. The present Main Hall was built only in 1915, so the kuden is thirty-two years older than the building that now contains it and was presumably carried over from the earlier sanctuary.
A Roof Folded Many Ways, and the Rokugō Crest
The Agency calls the roof unusual. A Yosemune-zukuri hipped roof is surmounted by a gabled roof carrying a Chidori-hafu, so the roof planes fold over one another again and again. Yurihonjo City's description likens it to a many-faced composition.
The Gegyo ornament hanging beneath the chidori-hafu bears the Rokugō tortoiseshell crest. The Rokugō family were lords of the Honjō domain, which governed this area through the Edo period. By 1883 the domain had been abolished, yet the old ruling family's crest was placed on the face of the cabinet that holds the deity.
The whole is finished in gold leaf and fitted with abundant metal ornaments. Photographs in the city's leaflet show tiers of brackets and carving beneath the roof, with the front steps and balustrade worked in the same detail.
Three Craftsmen on the Ridge Tablet
The Munafuda ridge tablet of Shinmei Shrine Kuden names the heads of three trades: the master carpenter, recorded as 尾留川宇左エ門; the master lacquerer Komatsu Gonnojō (小松権之丞); and the carver Ogawa Matsushirō (小川松四郎). One to build, one to lacquer, one to carve.
Ogawa is the same carver who worked on the Haiheiden in the last years of the Edo period. The dragons and lions that worshippers look up at on the front of the worship hall and the carving on this cabinet, hidden deep in the sanctuary, come from the same hand.
The kuden was registered as difficult to reproduce. Into 2 square metres it packs the combined skills of carpentry, lacquer and carving, and reproducing that work today would not be easy.
Can the Kuden Be Seen?
Shinmei Shrine Kuden is housed inside the Main Hall and is not seen by ordinary visitors; the Main Hall itself is closed. Its appearance is known mainly through photographs such as those in the city's leaflet. The shrine has held special viewings, but published information does not say if the kuden is included.
To place it in your mind, stand at the front of the Haiheiden at the top of the steps. The kuden lies at the far end of the axis that runs through worship hall, offering hall and Main Hall. Directions and general visiting conditions are on the Yoshizawa Shinmei Shrine page.
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Q&A
- What is Shinmei Shrine Kuden?
- A gilded miniature shrine building kept in the inner sanctuary of the Main Hall at Yoshizawa Shinmei Shrine, made to house the object of worship. It has a building area of 2 square metres.
- When was Shinmei Shrine Kuden made and when was it registered?
- It was made in 1883 and registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on 9 June 2004 (registration number 05-0109). It is older than the present Main Hall of 1915.
- What is unusual about the roof of Shinmei Shrine Kuden?
- A hipped roof is topped by a gabled roof with a chidori-hafu, producing many folded planes. The hanging gegyo ornament carries the tortoiseshell crest of the Rokugō family, lords of the Honjō domain.
- Who made Shinmei Shrine Kuden in Yurihonjo?
- The ridge tablet names a master carpenter, the master lacquerer Komatsu Gonnojō and the carver Ogawa Matsushirō, who also carved the decoration of the Haiheiden.
- Can visitors see Shinmei Shrine Kuden?
- No. It is kept inside the Main Hall, which is closed to the public.
Basic Information
| Name | Shinmei Shrine Kuden (神明社宮殿, Shinmeisha Kuden), miniature shrine inside the Main Hall |
|---|---|
| Location | 42 Kamibayashi, Yoshizawa, Yurihonjo City, Akita Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (structure); registration number 05-0109; criterion: difficult to reproduce |
| Year Designated | Registered 2004/06/09 (Heisei 16) |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Timber, single storey, board roof; building area 2 square metres |
| Owner | Shinmeisha (religious corporation) |
| Public Access | Not on view (kept inside the Main Hall) |
References
- National Cultural Properties Database, Agency for Cultural Affairs / Shinmei Shrine Kuden
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00004107
- Cultural Heritage Online / Shinmeisha Kuden
- https://bunka.nii.ac.jp/heritages/detail/117187
- Yurihonjo City official website / Shinmeisha (Registered Tangible Cultural Properties)
- https://www.city.yurihonjo.lg.jp/1001503/1002098/1002113/1002126/1003556.html
- Yurihonjo City / leaflet on Shinmeisha (PDF, Japanese)
- https://www.city.yurihonjo.lg.jp/_res/projects/default_project/_page_/001/003/556/1003556_001.pdf
- Akita Prefectural Association of Shinto Shrines / Shinmeisha, Yoshizawa
- https://akita-jinjacho.sakura.ne.jp/shrine_search/%e7%a5%9e%e6%98%8e%e7%a4%be-44/
Last verified: 2026.09.24
