A Board Fence on a Flood Wall
The Kobayashi Family Residence (Former Kotake Textile Co., Ltd.) Fence (小林家住宅（旧小武織物有限会社）塀) is a timber board fence of around 1953 in Hirosawa-cho, Kiryu City, Gunma Prefecture, registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property of Japan on October 7, 2014. It runs along the top of the southern stone wall and gives the owner's combined house and weaving mill its street front.
The national database records it as timber with a tiled coping, 49 metres long in total and about 1 metre high. It is an open-slatted board fence, so you can glimpse through it. At the gate it turns together with the wall beneath, and its west end meets the workers' dormitory, which is not part of the registration.
It carries the same date as the stone wall below, around 1953. The wall keeps water out; the fence on top of it gives the property its face.
Why It Was Registered
The Kobayashi Family Residence fence was registered under the criterion of contributing to the historic landscape of the country. The Agency for Cultural Affairs credits it with lending the mill-and-house compound the bearing of a proper residence.
A lot filled with sheds and storehouses can easily read as a works yard. A tiled board fence set on the stone wall changes that, and from the street the Kobayashi Family Residence looks like a house first. Kiryu City also points to the well-preserved wall and fence as the heart of the property's streetscape.
At about 1 metre, and with gaps in the boarding, the fence does not block the view entirely. It is less about enclosure than about giving the property a tidy outline.
What to Look For
The frame is simple: posts set on a timber sill and tied together with horizontal nuki tie-beams. The roof is nothing more than a row of ganburi ridge tiles laid over the top.
The boarding is set vertically with narrow battens nailed over each joint. In the open band at the top, the Ranma strip, a single horizontal rail crosses the gap. Vertical boards, thin battens and that one rail give a low fence a surprising amount of texture.
The turn at the gate, where fence and stone wall bend together, is the best place to read how it is put together, and to see how the timber meets the cobbles below.
Visiting
The Kobayashi Family Residence (Former Kotake Textile Co., Ltd.) Fence runs along the south side of the property and can be seen from outside. It is still part of a private property, so please do not touch it or peer through the gaps. No open days or tours could be found as of September 2026.
Photograph from outside the property, and avoid aiming a camera through the fence at the house or at residents. Directions are on the Kobayashi Family Residence (Former Kotake Textile Co., Ltd.) page.
- 📍 Plan Your Visit to Gunma
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Q&A
- Where is the Kobayashi Family Residence (Former Kotake Textile Co., Ltd.) Fence?
- It runs along the top of the stone wall on the south side of the property, turns at the gate, and meets the workers' dormitory, which is not registered, at its west end.
- How big is the Kobayashi Family Residence Fence?
- It is 49 metres long in total and about 1 metre high.
- When was the Kobayashi Family Residence Fence built?
- The national database dates it to around 1953, the same as the stone wall beneath it.
- Can I see the Kobayashi Family Residence Fence?
- Yes, from outside the property. It is on private land, so please do not touch it or look through into the grounds.
- When was the Kobayashi Family Residence Fence registered?
- It was registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on October 7, 2014, as number 10-0318.
Basic Information
| Name | Kobayashi Family Residence (Former Kotake Textile Co., Ltd.) Fence |
|---|---|
| Location | 1111-9 Fukushima, Hirosawa-cho 5, Kiryu City, Gunma Prefecture, and other lots |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Building, other structure) |
| Year Designated | Registered 2014/10/7 (Heisei 26) |
| Quantity | 1 structure |
| Dimensions | 49 metres long in total, about 1 metre high (timber, tiled coping) |
| Owner | Private owner |
| Public Access | Visible from outside (grounds not open) |
References
- Database of National Cultural Properties: Kobayashi Family Residence (Former Kotake Textile Co., Ltd.) Fence (Agency for Cultural Affairs)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00010109
- Kiryu City: Kobayashi Family Residence (6 properties) (Japanese)
- https://www.city.kiryu.lg.jp/kankou/bunkazai/1010700/kunitouroku/1011321.html
- Kiryu Chamber of Commerce and Industry: Former Kotake Textile (Japanese, PDF)
- https://www.kiryucci.or.jp/FT/2013fukei/2013fukei-kotake.pdf
Last verified: 2026.09.24
