Two Subsidiary Shrines Under One Roof
Shinmei Shrine Subsidiary Shrine Joint Hall (神明社境内社合殿, Shinmeisha Keidaisha Aiden) is a small shrine building in the precinct of Yoshizawa Shinmei Shrine in Yoshizawa, Yurihonjo City, Akita Prefecture, built in the middle Meiji years and registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on 12 July 2005.
An aiden is a hall in which more than one deity is enshrined together. This one houses two subsidiary shrines of the precinct: Kotohira, whose deity watches over seafarers, and Akiba, the protector against fire. Neither the shrine's own chronology nor the national database gives a precise year; both say only that it dates from the middle of the Meiji era.
The building is 4 and a half bays by 3 bays, single storey, with a gabled roof entered from the gable end in the Tsumairi manner and clad in sheet iron. The building area is 21 square metres. It stands apart from the main sequence of worship hall and sanctuary as a separate structure for the subsidiary shrines.
Plain Outside, Bracketed Within
From outside there is little to see. Simple boat-shaped bracket arms (funa-hijiki) sit on the front posts, and beams are stacked in the gable. Yurihonjo City describes it as a shrine of a type common in Akita in the middle Meiji period, sparing in decoration but with decorative beams and struts in the gable. It was registered as contributing to the historic landscape.
Step inside and the tone changes. Round columns stand 4 and a half shaku in from the back wall, carrying one-step projecting bracket sets (degumi) topped by sanehijiki bracket arms, with Kaerumata frog-leg struts between them, and the floor behind them is raised a step to form the Naijin inner sanctuary. Outside, the builders kept to plain brackets; the full bracketing is reserved for the part of the hall where the deities reside.
Part of the ceiling over the Gejin, the outer worship space, carries a dragon painted in ink, inscribed with a date in 1852. If the hall itself belongs to the middle Meiji years, the painting is decades older than the building around it. How it came to be here is not explained in any published source.
Seeing the Joint Hall
The interior of the Shinmei Shrine Subsidiary Shrine Joint Hall is closed, so the bracketing of the inner sanctuary and the ink dragon cannot be seen from outside.
The exterior can be viewed from within the precinct. The bracket arms over the front posts and the stacked beams and struts of the gable are the building's only ornaments. Because it is entered from the gable end, standing in front of it puts the triangular gable squarely in view.
No official guidance on photography could be found; ask the shrine if in doubt. Directions and general visiting conditions are on the Yoshizawa Shinmei Shrine page.
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Q&A
- Which deities are enshrined in Shinmei Shrine Subsidiary Shrine Joint Hall?
- Two subsidiary shrines of Yoshizawa Shinmei Shrine, Kotohira and Akiba, are enshrined together in the one building.
- When was Shinmei Shrine Subsidiary Shrine Joint Hall built and registered?
- It dates from the middle Meiji period, with no exact year recorded, and was registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on 12 July 2005 (registration number 05-0119).
- What are the architectural features of Shinmei Shrine Subsidiary Shrine Joint Hall?
- A gabled hall of 4 and a half bays by 3 bays entered from the gable end. The exterior is plain, but inside, round columns with projecting bracket sets and kaerumata struts mark off a raised inner sanctuary.
- How old is the dragon painting in Shinmei Shrine Subsidiary Shrine Joint Hall?
- The ink dragon on part of the outer ceiling is inscribed with a date in 1852, earlier than the middle Meiji date given for the building itself.
- Can visitors go inside Shinmei Shrine Subsidiary Shrine Joint Hall in Yurihonjo?
- No. The interior is closed, but the exterior can be seen from within the precinct.
Basic Information
| Name | Shinmei Shrine Subsidiary Shrine Joint Hall (神明社境内社合殿, Shinmeisha Keidaisha Aiden) |
|---|---|
| Location | 42 Kamibayashi, Yoshizawa, Yurihonjo City, Akita Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (structure); registration number 05-0119; criterion: contributing to the historic landscape |
| Year Designated | Registered 2005/07/12 (Heisei 17) |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Timber, single storey, sheet-iron roof; building area 21 square metres; 4 and a half bays by 3 bays |
| Owner | Shinmeisha (religious corporation) |
| Public Access | Interior closed; exterior visible from within the precinct |
References
- National Cultural Properties Database, Agency for Cultural Affairs / Shinmei Shrine Subsidiary Shrine Joint Hall
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00004690
- 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
