Five Mausolea at the End of the Temple Street
Tsugaru Family Mausoleum (津軽家霊屋, Tsugaru-ke Tamaya) stands in the precinct of Choshoji, a Soto Zen temple at Nishishigemori 1-chome, Hirosaki City, Aomori Prefecture, comprising five mortuary halls built between 1631 and 1753 and designated Important Cultural Properties on 22 January 1986. The quantity is five buildings. On 17 August 1993 the front gate and enclosing fence of each hall were added to the designation.
The five stand in an almost straight line running south from the Mieido, the hall that holds the wooden image of Tsugaru Tamenobu, founder of the domain. Each faces east, each is enclosed by its own fence, and each has its own gate: five separate compounds among tall cedars.
Choshoji was founded in 1528 at Tanesato, in what is now Ajigasawa, to hold memorial rites for Oura Mitsunobu, ancestor of the Tsugaru. In 1610 the second lord, Tsugaru Nobuhira, moved it to the present site as part of the building of Hirosaki Castle. Nobuhira gathered thirty-three Soto temples of the domain here to form Zenrinnagi, a temple street that doubled as a defensive line guarding the castle's southwest, the unlucky quarter. Choshoji sits at its far end.
The Five Halls
In order of construction:
Kangetsudai, for the principal wife of the first lord Tsugaru Tamenobu, was first built in 1628 and rebuilt in 1672. What stands today is the rebuilding.
Hekigandai, of 1631, holds the second lord Tsugaru Nobuhira, who completed Hirosaki Castle and moved Choshoji here. It went up shortly after his death and is the oldest of the five as they now stand.
Meikyodai, of 1638, is for Nobuhira's principal wife Matenhime. She was the third daughter of Matsudaira Yasumoto and married into the Tsugaru as an adopted daughter of Tokugawa Ieyasu, and her turbulent life amid political marriage and succession disputes has been retold in novels and on stage.
Hakuundai, of 1656, holds the third lord Tsugaru Nobuyoshi.
Ryoundai, of 1753, is for the sixth lord Tsugaru Nobuaki and is the most recent of the five.
A Shared Form, and the Differences Within It
All five are built in bare, unfinished timber, two bays square, about 3.6 metres each way. The roofs are hip-and-gable, shingled, and entered at the gable end. Panelled doors close the front; the other three sides are boarded. Inside, the floor is planked, the ceiling is a single flat panel, and a stone seamless stupa stands at the centre. Wooden memorial tablets line the surrounding walls.
The plain exteriors give no hint of what is overhead. Look up and the flat ceilings carry painting in full colour: dragons in four of the halls, and in Hakuundai alone a heavenly figure. The drop between outside and inside is what gives this group its particular quality.
The crests differ too. Four halls carry the Tsugaru family crest, the gyoyo-botan. Meikyodai alone is dressed in the hollyhock crest of the Tokugawa, marking Matenhime's origins. A political alliance is written on the surface of the building.
Why Five Buildings Count as One
Structure and scale are shared; the detailing is not. That difference is the point of the designation.
First, five mortuary halls survive together spanning more than 120 years, from 1631 in the early Edo period to 1753 in the middle, and the date of every one is known. As dated material for the chronology of early modern mortuary architecture there is little to match it.
Second, the way detail shifts over time within a constant type can be followed here in one place, hall by hall. Any single building is one example of a daimyo mausoleum. Only with all five in line does the axis of time appear.
Third, the setting itself is valued: full-scale mortuary halls standing in ordered succession make a composition with few parallels among the daimyo mausolea of Japan.
The 1993 addition of the gates and fences follows the same logic. The fact that each hall occupies its own enclosed compound is part of what this group is.
Visiting, and the Rest of Choshoji
Walking the precinct is free. Seeing the interiors of the mausolea requires the guided visit, which is by advance booking for groups of ten or more at 300 yen. Hours run 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. from April to November; from December to March general admission stops and only booked groups are received. The painted dragons and the heavenly figure can be seen only on that guided visit, so anyone whose object is the interiors should contact Choshoji in advance on 0172-32-0813. The same call will settle whether photography is allowed.
Other Important Cultural Properties stand in the same precinct. The main gate of 1629 rises over sixteen metres. The main hall is regarded as among the oldest surviving Soto main halls in Japan. There is also a Kamakura-period bronze bell and the Soryukutsu, which houses five hundred arhat figures. It would be a waste to see only the mausolea.
From JR Hirosaki Station take the Konan bus about fifteen minutes to Shigemoricho Choshoji-iriguchi, then walk five to ten minutes. From Chuo Hirosaki Station on the Konan Railway the walk takes about twenty-eight minutes. Approaching on foot through Zenrinnagi gives the experience of the street itself, thirty-three temples along some six hundred metres.
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Q&A
- What is the Tsugaru Family Mausoleum?
- Five mortuary halls for the lords of the Hirosaki domain and their principal wives, standing in the precinct of Choshoji in Hirosaki City, Aomori Prefecture. Built between 1631 and 1753, they were designated Important Cultural Properties on 22 January 1986, with the gates and fences added in 1993.
- Who is enshrined in each hall of the Tsugaru Family Mausoleum?
- Kangetsudai holds the principal wife of the first lord Tamenobu, Hekigandai the second lord Nobuhira, Meikyodai his wife Matenhime, Hakuundai the third lord Nobuyoshi and Ryoundai the sixth lord Nobuaki. Construction runs from 1631 for Hekigandai to 1753 for Ryoundai, more than 120 years.
- Why are the five halls registered as a single item?
- Because dated mortuary halls covering 120 years survive together, allowing the shift of detail within a constant type to be followed in one place. A single hall is just one example of a daimyo mausoleum; five in line supply the axis of time.
- Why does Meikyodai carry the Tokugawa crest?
- Because Matenhime, enshrined there, was the third daughter of Matsudaira Yasumoto and married into the Tsugaru as an adopted daughter of Tokugawa Ieyasu. The other four halls carry the Tsugaru gyoyo-botan crest; Meikyodai alone bears the Tokugawa hollyhock, so a political alliance is written on the building's surface.
- Can the interiors of the Tsugaru Family Mausoleum be seen?
- Only on the guided visit, booked in advance for groups of ten or more at 300 yen. Hours are 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. from April to November; from December to March only booked groups are received. The painted ceilings can be seen only then, so contact Choshoji in advance on 0172-32-0813.
Basic Information
| Name | Tsugaru Family Mausoleum (津軽家霊屋): Kangetsudai, Hekigandai, Meikyodai, Hakuundai and Ryoundai |
|---|---|
| Location | Nishishigemori 1-chome, Hirosaki City, Aomori Prefecture (precinct of Choshoji) |
| Designation | Important Cultural Property (structure) |
| Year Designated | 22 January 1986; gates and fences added 17 August 1993 |
| Quantity | 5 buildings, each with its own front gate and enclosing fence |
| Dimensions | Each hall: bare timber, two bays square (about 3.6 m each way), hip-and-gable shingled roof, entered at the gable end, panelled front doors with boarding on the other three sides, planked floor, flat painted ceiling, stone seamless stupa at the centre. Built 1631 to 1753 |
| Owner | Choshoji (Soto Zen) |
| Public Access | Precinct free to walk. Interiors only on the guided visit: advance booking, groups of ten or more, 300 yen. 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. April to November; booked groups only December to March |
References
- Cultural Heritage Online: Tsugaru Family Mausoleum
- https://bunka.nii.ac.jp/heritages/detail/184196
- Aomori Prefectural Board of Education: nationally designated Important Cultural Properties (structures)
- https://www.pref.aomori.lg.jp/soshiki/kyoiku/e-bunka/jubun_kenzoubutu_23.html
- Hirosaki City: nationally designated cultural properties
- https://www.city.hirosaki.aomori.jp/gaiyou/bunkazai/kuni/kuni8.html
- Hirosaki City: historic landscape maintenance plan, reference materials
- https://www.city.hirosaki.aomori.jp/jouhou/keikaku/rekimachi/files/r3sankou.pdf
- Hirosaki Heritage: Tsugaru Family Mausoleum
- https://www.hirosaki-heritage.com/tsugaruke-tamaya/
- Taiheizan Choshoji official site
- https://xn--phry5son2c.com/
Last verified: 2026.08.31
Cultural Treasures in the Same Area
All are within walking distance in the same area, so we recommend visiting them together.
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