About the Nemoto Family Residence Household Shrine
The Nemoto Family Residence Household Shrine (根本家住宅屋敷社, Nemoto-ke Jūtaku Yashikisha) in Ichibu, Abiko City, Chiba Prefecture, is a small one-bay shrine in the Nagare-zukuri style built in the late Meiji period (1898 to 1912), entered on the national register as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on October 14, 2021.
A yashikisha is a shrine kept within a family's own grounds. The Nemoto Family Residence Household Shrine stands in the rear garden at the southwest corner of the property, south of the main house. Its footprint is only 0.6 m², which makes it by far the smallest of the 4 registered Nemoto buildings. The roof is sheathed in copper. Its registration number is 12-0317.
Full-Scale Carpentry on a Small Shrine
For its size, the Nemoto Family Residence Household Shrine is put together with surprising rigour. Working up from the ground, following the Agency for Cultural Affairs description:
It rests on a base of rounded stones, on which a timber sill runs all the way round. The posts rise from that sill and are tied together by 2 tiers of horizontal Nageshi beams, one at floor level and one along the top of the openings. The frame, in other words, is assembled the way a full-size shrine hall would be, on a structure smaller than a single tatami mat.
At the front, 5 wooden steps climb to a pair of hinged plank doors. Between the stone base and the steps, the body of the shrine is lifted well above the garden floor.
The roof is where the decoration is concentrated. The ridge is built up high and set with 3 tomoe crests, the comma-shaped swirl motif common on shrine roofs, and the ornamental boards at each end of the ridge are generously sized. On a building this small, the ridge is the part the eye goes to first, and that is where the effort went.
Why the Nemoto Household Shrine Was Registered
The Nemoto Family Residence Household Shrine became a Registered Tangible Cultural Property in 2021 as a building that contributes to the historic landscape of the nation. The Agency's citation describes it as small but carefully made, a shrine that gives definition to the rear garden. Abiko City likewise says the quality of its workmanship was what earned it recognition despite its size.
The rear garden lies at the far end of the homestead, away from the storehouses at the entrance and the east front of the main house. Within that garden the shrine is the point where the view comes to rest. Its contribution to the setting is one of position and finish rather than scale.
Neither the Agency nor Abiko City records which deity the shrine honours.
Seeing the Nemoto Family Residence Household Shrine
The Nemoto Family Residence Household Shrine stands in the rear garden of a private homestead and is not open to visitors, including for worship. No opening had been announced as of September 2026.
The Agency for Cultural Affairs database carries 2 photographs of the shrine, a general view and a front view, which show the crested ridge, the ridge-end boards, the plank doors and the wooden steps.
Q&A
- Can I visit or pray at the Nemoto Family Residence Household Shrine?
- No. The Nemoto Family Residence Household Shrine is in the rear garden of a private home that is not open to the public. Photographs are available in the Agency for Cultural Affairs database.
- How big is the Nemoto Family Residence Household Shrine?
- Its footprint is 0.6 m², the smallest of the 4 registered buildings at the Nemoto homestead.
- When was the Nemoto Family Residence Household Shrine built?
- The Agency for Cultural Affairs dates it to the late Meiji period, between 1898 and 1912.
- What details should I look for on the Nemoto Family Residence Household Shrine?
- The high ridge with its 3 tomoe crests, the large ridge-end boards, the rounded-stone base, and the 5 wooden steps leading to hinged plank doors.
- Which deity is enshrined in the Nemoto Family Residence Household Shrine?
- The descriptions published by the Agency for Cultural Affairs and Abiko City do not name the deity.
Basic Information
| Name | Nemoto Family Residence Household Shrine |
|---|---|
| Location | 93-1 Shukudori, Ichibu, Abiko City, Chiba Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Building) |
| Year Designated | 2021 |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Building area 0.6 m² |
| Owner | Private owner |
| Public Access | Not open to the public (within a private residence) |
References
- Agency for Cultural Affairs, Database of National Cultural Properties: Nemoto Family Residence Household Shrine (Japanese)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00013964
- Cultural Heritage Online: Nemoto Family Residence Household Shrine (Japanese)
- https://online.bunka.go.jp/heritages/detail/520114
- Abiko City, Abiko Digital Archaeology Museum: Nemoto Family Residence (Japanese)
- https://www.city.abiko.chiba.jp/kouko/siteibunkazai/nemotokejyuutaku.html
Last verified: 2026.09.25
