A Brick Wall on the Street
The Hirota Family Residence South Wall (廣田家住宅南塀) is a brick boundary wall of the late Meiji period (1898 to 1912) in Kamisakabe 2-chome, Amagasaki City, Hyogo Prefecture, and was registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property (structure) on 24 June 2021 (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
The Agency records it as a brick wall with a tiled coping, 20 metres long, registered for contributing to the historic landscape of the country and classed as an "other structure" rather than a building; registration number 28-0763.
The Hirota Family Residence South Wall divides the plot from the road on the south. Its east end meets the gatehouse and its west end bends slightly north; with the gatehouse, it makes up the homestead's street front.
Construction
The Hirota Family Residence South Wall is built of brick and topped with a small roof of sangawara-buki pan tiles. The Agency's description gives a height of 2 metres and a total length of 19 metres, while the structure field of the same database and Amagasaki City's list give 20 metres.
The outer face is rendered grey and the inner face white. Brick is an eye-catching material for a late Meiji farmhouse wall, but here it is hidden under the render.
Why It Was Registered
The Agency values the Hirota Family Residence South Wall as part of the street scene of an old family, alongside the gatehouse. Its grey outer face sits quietly beside the black plaster of the gate, letting the gatehouse lead while tying the street front together.
What to Look For
Because both faces of the Hirota Family Residence South Wall are rendered in mortar, the brick itself does not show. What repays a look is the colour scheme: grey on the street side and white on the inner face, echoing the gatehouse's black front and white back. The Agency describes the finish as chosen to harmonise with the gatehouse.
Notice too the plan. The wall is fixed to the gatehouse at its east end and turns slightly north at its west end, following the corner of the plot so that the south-west corner of the homestead is properly closed. The Agency database includes a photograph of the street side.
Visiting
The Hirota Family Residence South Wall stands on the road along the south side of the plot, but it is the wall of a private home, and Amagasaki City states that the residence is not open to the public. We have not checked the view from the street on site; if you pass by, please respect the residents' privacy.
Q&A
- What is the Hirota Family Residence South Wall made of?
- Brick, with a coping of pan tiles. The outer face is rendered grey and the inner face white.
- How long and how high is the Hirota Family Residence South Wall?
- It is 2 metres high. The Agency database's structure field and Amagasaki City's list give its length as 20 metres, while the Agency's description gives 19 metres in all.
- Where is the Hirota Family Residence South Wall?
- It separates the plot from the road on the south, joining the gatehouse at its east end and turning slightly north at its west end.
- Can I visit the Hirota Family Residence South Wall?
- You cannot enter the grounds. It belongs to a private home, and Amagasaki City states that the residence is not open to the public.
- When was the Hirota Family Residence South Wall registered?
- On 24 June 2021 (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
Basic Information
| Name | Hirota Family Residence South Wall (廣田家住宅南塀) |
|---|---|
| Location | 162 Kamisakabe 2-chome, Amagasaki City, Hyogo Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Structure) |
| Year Designated | Registered 2021/6/24 (Reiwa 3) |
| Quantity | 1 structure |
| Dimensions | Brick, tiled, 20 metres long (19 metres in the Agency's description), 2 metres high |
| Owner | Not listed in the Agency database (private residence) |
| Public Access | Not open to the public (private residence) |
References
- Agency for Cultural Affairs, Database of National Cultural Properties: Hirota Family Residence South Wall (in Japanese)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00013860
- Cultural Heritage Online: Hirota Family Residence South Wall (in Japanese)
- https://online.bunka.go.jp/heritages/detail/597829
- Amagasaki City: Hirota Family Residence, registered cultural properties of Amagasaki (in Japanese)
- https://www.city.amagasaki.hyogo.jp/manabu/bunkazai_0/1028308/1028313/1028798.html
Last verified: 2026.10.19
