A Gate for Honoured Guests
The Nobuoka Family Residence Middle Gate and Wall (信岡家住宅中門及び塀, Nobuoka-ke Jūtaku Chūmon oyobi Hei) is a late Edo gate with flanking walls standing southeast of the teahouse at the Nobuoka Family Residence in Tode, Shin’ichi-cho, Fukuyama City, Hiroshima Prefecture, and was listed as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on 18 April 2008.
The gate is a one-bay Udekimon, 1.5 metres wide, with a gabled pantile roof and bracing posts front and back. Timber walls with tiled copings run north and south from it for a total of 10 metres.
Tradition holds that it was the gate to an onari zashiki that stood where the teahouse is now, a formal room usually kept for visits by a lord or other high-ranking guest. The Nobuoka middle gate was, in other words, an inner entrance reserved for the most important visitors.
Why It Was Registered
The gate and wall were listed for their contribution to the historic landscape. The Agency for Cultural Affairs notes that the gable ornament, the diamond-lattice transom and the metal fittings on the plank doors all carry the dignity expected of a gate for formal visits.
That a headman’s compound had a dedicated gate and reception room for such visits shows the Nobuoka received guests of high rank. The reception room is gone, but the surviving gate still marks this corner of the compound as a place for special guests. A teahouse now stands where the room was, and the gate still leads into its garden.
What to Look At
Bracket-arm construction
In an udekimon, short arms projecting from the gateposts carry the roof beams. The Nobuoka middle gate is a modest example, 1.5 metres wide, steadied by Hikaebashira, bracing posts set in front of and behind the main posts.
Gable ornament and diamond lattice
The gable ends carry decorative boarding, and above the doors sits a Ranma transom of diamond lattice. Of the compound’s gates, this is the one that received decorative attention.
Door fittings
The plank doors are fitted with metalwork that also signals the gate’s status. If you stand in front of it, look closely at the shapes of the fittings.
The walls
Walls run 10 metres in total to the north and south, closing off the teahouse area from the rest of the compound. Gate and walls together tell the visitor that what lies beyond is a formal space.
Visiting
The Nobuoka middle gate stands southeast of the teahouse, so on days when the Nobuoka Flat Museum uses the teahouse you may pass it on your way in. Whether visitors can walk through the gate depends on the event.
As of October 2026 we found no notice of separate public access to the gate and wall.
Q&A
- When was the Nobuoka Family Residence Middle Gate and Wall built?
- They date from the late Edo period.
- What kind of gate is the Nobuoka middle gate?
- It is a one-bay bracket-arm gate (udekimon), 1.5 metres wide, with a gabled pantile roof and bracing posts, flanked by walls 10 metres long in total.
- Why is the Nobuoka Family Residence Middle Gate considered high in status?
- Tradition says it served a formal reception room for high-ranking guests, and the Agency for Cultural Affairs sees that status in its gable ornament, diamond-lattice transom and door fittings.
- Why is the Nobuoka Family Residence Middle Gate and Wall a Registered Tangible Cultural Property?
- It was registered on 18 April 2008 for its contribution to the historic landscape.
- Can I visit the Nobuoka Family Residence Middle Gate and Wall?
- There is no separate public access. You may see it on Nobuoka Flat Museum event days when the teahouse is in use; check with the organisers what is open.
Basic Information
| Name | Nobuoka Family Residence Middle Gate and Wall (信岡家住宅中門及び塀) |
|---|---|
| Location | 2166 Tode, Shin'ichi-cho, Fukuyama City, Hiroshima Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Building) |
| Year Designated | Registered 2008/4/18 (Heisei 20) |
| Quantity | 1 structure (gate and wall) |
| Dimensions | Gate: timber, tiled roof, 1.5 metres wide; wall: timber, tiled roof, 10 metres long |
| Owner | Nobuoka Jisho Co., Ltd. |
| Public Access | No separate public access (may be seen on teahouse event days) |
References
- Agency for Cultural Affairs, Database of National Cultural Properties: Nobuoka Family Residence Middle Gate and Wall (Japanese)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00007133
- Cultural Heritage Online: Nobuoka Family Residence Middle Gate and Wall (Japanese)
- https://online.bunka.go.jp/heritages/detail/153735
- Nobuoka Flat Museum (Japanese)
- https://nobuoka-museum.jimdofree.com/
Last verified: 2026.10.08
