Registered Tangible Cultural Properties · Chiba

Mogi Honke Residence Inari Shrine Water Pavilion

Mogi Honke Residence Inari Shrine Water Pavilion: 1808 Fox Carvings

A tiny purification pavilion of 1808 beside a Noda soy brewer's household shrine, carved with Chinese lions, sacred foxes and a fox wedding procession. Private.

Designation Registered Tangible Cultural Properties

Location Chiba

A Water Pavilion Beside the Household Shrine

The Mogi Honke Residence Inari Shrine Water Pavilion (茂木本家住宅稲荷神社水屋, Mogi Honke Jūtaku Inari Jinja Mizuya) in Noda, Chiba Prefecture, is a small timber pavilion built in 1808 beside the household Inari shrine of the Mogi Shichizaemon soy sauce brewing family, and it was registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on 15 January 2010. A mizuya of this kind shelters the basin where worshippers rinse their hands and mouth before praying, the equivalent of a shrine's chozuya.

It stands south-east of the shrine, ridge running north to south, one bay square with an area of 2 square metres, under a Kirizuma-zukuri copper-clad gable roof. It dates from the same year as the shrine, and the two are the oldest of the estate's 13 registered structures.

Carved Foxes and a Fox Wedding

The posts are square with finely chamfered corners and lean slightly inward as they rise, the Uchikorobi technique. Head-ties and a top plate lock them together, Mitsudo-gumi bracket sets sit on top, and the eaves are a double layer of closely set rafters.

For its size, the pavilion is crowded with carving. The beam-ends are carved as Chinese lions, the panels between the posts and the Gegyo boards hanging from the gables show sacred foxes, and the west face carries a carved scene of kitsune no yomeiri, the folk tale of a fox wedding procession.

The shrine shows its foxes in plaster relief; the Mogi Honke Residence Inari Shrine Water Pavilion shows them in wood. Inari's messenger appears again and again, worked by two different trades, plasterer and carpenter.

Visiting

The pavilion belongs to a private household shrine, and no information on public worship or opening has been found. It stands inside the brick wall, and the carvings cannot be seen from the road.

Please do not photograph through gaps in the gate or fence into the house. Directions are on the Mogi Honke Residence page.

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Q&A

QCan I visit the Mogi Honke Residence Inari Shrine Water Pavilion?: ANo. It is part of a private household shrine, and no public opening has been announced.

QWhat is the Mogi Honke Residence Inari Shrine Water Pavilion?: AA small pavilion sheltering the basin where worshippers purify their hands and mouth, the equivalent of a shrine's chozuya.

QWhen was the Mogi Honke Residence Inari Shrine Water Pavilion built?: AIn 1808, the same year as the shrine. The two are the oldest of the estate's 13 registered structures.

QWhat do the carvings on the Mogi Honke Residence Inari Shrine Water Pavilion show?: AChinese lions on the beam-ends, sacred foxes between the posts and on the gable boards, and a fox wedding procession on the west face.

QHow big is the Mogi Honke Residence Inari Shrine Water Pavilion?: AIt is one bay square with an area of 2 square metres, a timber pavilion with a copper gable roof, inward-leaning posts, bracket sets and double rafters.

Basic Information

Name	Mogi Honke Residence Inari Shrine Water Pavilion (茂木本家住宅稲荷神社水屋)
Location	242-10 Higashishitamachi, Noda City, Chiba Prefecture
Designation	Registered Tangible Cultural Property (building); registration no. 12-0137; criterion: contributing to the historic landscape of the nation
Year Designated	Registered 2010/1/15 (Heisei 22)
Quantity	1 structure
Dimensions	Timber, copper roof, area 2 square metres, one bay by one bay
Owner	Private individual
Public Access	Not open (private household shrine; no public opening announced)