What the Former Kai Family Residence Rear Gate is
The Former Kai Family Residence Rear Gate (旧甲斐家住宅裏門, Kyū Kai-ke Jūtaku Uramon) is a late Taishō (1919 to 1926) wooden gate on the west side of the Kai estate in Aza Itchome, Kitakata City, Fukushima Prefecture, opening onto the street one block west of the Atsushio Kaidō, and was listed as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property in 2021.
It faces west onto a back street of Koarai. The opening is 2.0 meters wide, with a wing wall on each side. The miso and koji storehouse continues to the south and the soy sauce storehouse lies beyond to the northeast, so this was the working entrance, presumably used for moving ingredients and goods and by the household staff.
If the front gate was the face of the house, the Former Kai Family Residence Rear Gate served the business. That it was still built with care says much about the whole project.
Why it was registered
It was registered as contributing to the historic landscape of the country. The Agency for Cultural Affairs notes that board wing walls (Sodobei) close the sides and that the gate, the miso storehouse and the soy sauce storehouse together form the back frontage of the estate.
It is a Yakuimon with a gabled pantiled roof (Sangawara-buki) and a pair of hinged board doors. Where the front gate uses round-and-flat tiles and single keyaki boards, the rear gate steps down to pantiles and plank doors, and then puts its effort into the ceiling.
What to look for
Stand under the Former Kai Family Residence Rear Gate and look up. The agency records eaves finished with exposed lathing, a vertical-lattice transom (Ranma) above the doors and a coffered ceiling (Gō-tenjō), all neatly detailed.
A coffered ceiling usually belongs in a formal reception room or a temple hall, so finding one over a service entrance tells you something about the owner's taste. From the street, the gate, its plank wing walls and the earthen wall of the koji storehouse to the south read as a single elevation.
Visiting the Former Kai Family Residence Rear Gate
The Former Kai Family Residence Rear Gate faces the street on the west side and can be seen from the road during the closure; the agency's photo shows its west front from the northwest. Afternoon sun falls on the face of the gate. Scaffolding or sheeting may cover parts of it at some stages of the work.
The estate has been closed since April 2023 for conservation work, so the gate cannot be passed. Special openings are held about once a year, with the next planned for March 2027. Directions and the repair schedule are on the Former Kai Family Residence page.
Q&A
- Where is the Former Kai Family Residence Rear Gate?
- On the west side of the Kai estate, facing the street one block west of the Atsushio Kaidō, with the miso and koji storehouse to its south.
- When was the Former Kai Family Residence Rear Gate built?
- In the late Taishō period, between 1919 and 1926.
- What kind of gate is the Former Kai Family Residence Rear Gate?
- A pantiled yakuimon 2.0 meters wide, hung with a pair of plank doors and closed at the sides by board wing walls.
- What is special about the ceiling of the Former Kai Family Residence Rear Gate?
- It has lath-finished eaves, a vertical-lattice transom over the doors and a coffered ceiling, unusually refined for a back entrance.
- Can I see the Former Kai Family Residence Rear Gate during the closure?
- Yes, from the street on the west side. The estate itself has been closed since April 2023, so you cannot go through.
Basic Information
| Name | Former Kai Family Residence Rear Gate |
|---|---|
| Location | 4611-1 Aza Itchome, Kitakata City, Fukushima Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Building) |
| Year Designated | Registered 2021 (Reiwa 3) |
| Quantity | 1 structure |
| Dimensions | Wooden, tiled roof, frontage 2.0 m, with wing walls on both sides |
| Owner | Kitakata City |
| Public Access | Exterior visible from the road; closed since 2023 for conservation work planned through fiscal 2030 |
References
- Former Kai Family Residence Rear Gate (Agency for Cultural Affairs database)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00013934
- Former Kai Family Residence Rear Gate (Cultural Heritage Online)
- https://online.bunka.go.jp/heritages/detail/520084
- Former Kai Family Residence Front Gate (Agency for Cultural Affairs database)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00013933
- Conservation work on the Former Kai Family Kura Residence (Kitakata City)
- https://www.city.kitakata.fukushima.jp/site/kyukaike/57982.html
Last verified: 2026.10.01
