Matsuyama Castle Tamon Turret

Linking the Small Keep and the South Corner

The Matsuyama Castle Tamon Turret (松山城多聞櫓) is a single-storey timber tamon turret of 1967 in Marunouchi, Matsuyama City, Ehime Prefecture, and was registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property (structure) on September 10, 2019 (Agency for Cultural Affairs).

The Agency records a single-storey timber building with a tiled roof and a building area of 52 square metres; registration number 38-0139.

Between the Small Keep and the South Corner

The Matsuyama Castle Tamon Turret is a long single-storey turret linking the Small Keep and the South Corner Turret, with a simple gabled tiled roof (Agency for Cultural Affairs). Its plastered and clapboarded walls match the turrets, and a roofed stone-dropping opening projects from the outer south face.

Inside is a single room, with double fireproof doors at the top of the stairs on the Small Keep side (Agency for Cultural Affairs).

The Agency dates it to 1967. According to Matsuyama City, it was lost by arson in 1933 and rebuilt in timber to the basic designs and specifications for nine buildings drawn up by the Ministry of Education in 1935, the work being completed on May 27, 1968.

Why It Was Registered

The Agency notes that, like the Ten-Bay Corridor, it shows how the keep was defended, and registered it for its contribution to the historic landscape.

What to Look For

Look for the stone-dropping opening on the south face and the double fireproof doors above the stairs on the Small Keep side (Agency for Cultural Affairs).

Visiting

According to Matsuyama City, the keep is linked to the small keep and turrets by passages, and the stairs inside are steep. Opening hours, fees and access are covered on the Matsuyama Castle group page.