Former Horikiri Family Residence Front Gate

About the Former Horikiri Family Residence Front Gate

The Former Horikiri Family Residence Front Gate (旧堀切家住宅表門, Kyū Horikiri-ke Jūtaku Omotemon) is a wooden munamon gate in the west boundary of the Kyu Horikiri-tei estate in Iizaka-machi, Fukushima City, Fukushima Prefecture, built in the early Meiji era (1868 to 1882) and registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property in 2020.

The opening is 2.6 meters wide. As a Munamon, the gate carries its roof on just two main posts, and a short wall extends from its south side. The gate stands along a short lane off Yumachi-dori, with a wooden signboard reading Kyu Horikiri-tei hung on it. The estate's own access directions call it the main gate.

The Kyu Horikiri-tei website lists the front gate, together with the main house (rebuilt the following year), the Jikkengura rice store and the well house, among the structures dating from before the fire of 1880. If so, the Horikiri Front Gate has marked the family's entrance since before the estate burned.

Why the Front Gate Was Registered

The Former Horikiri Family Residence Front Gate was registered for its contribution to the historic landscape. In the Agency for Cultural Affairs' words, it gives the old family home a dignified street front.

Near the gate stands the library, linked by a corridor to the southwest corner of the main house. The Agency describes the library, too, as a main element that, together with the front gate, shapes the street scene. The gate and the small library side by side form the face the Horikiri estate presents to the lane.

What to Look For at the Front Gate

The roof is gabled (Kirizuma-zukuri), and under the eaves the rafters (Taruki) are set close together in a single tier. Stand under the gate and look up to see how tightly the slim rafters are spaced.

Once through, turn around and look at the back. Behind each of the two main posts stands a brace post (Hikaebashira), tied to it by two tiers of tie beams (Nuki). From the street side this framing is hidden, yet it is what keeps a munamon upright.

On both gable ends, a carved pendant (Gegyo) hangs where the bargeboards meet at the peak. The same ornament appears on both sides, so step a little way along the lane to see it at an angle.

The sources disagree on the roofing. The data field in the Agency's database says tiled roof with a side wall, while the commentary in the same database describes a gabled copper roof with a short wall on the south side. It is worth checking the roof yourself on site.

Visiting the Front Gate

Because the Former Horikiri Family Residence Front Gate faces the lane, its outer side can be seen at any time. Passing through it is possible during Kyu Horikiri-tei's opening hours, 9:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m., with free admission.

The brace posts and tie beams are clearest from just inside the gate. For a photo of the signboard side, step back along the lane and take the gate and the library together; that is the street front the Agency singles out.

The estate also has a rear gate, and directions from some parking lots lead visitors in that way. If you want to arrive through the front gate, approach along the lane from Yumachi-dori.