Ijokaku

An Octagonal Pavilion Linked to Sun Yat-sen

Ijokaku (移情閣) is an octagonal three-storey pavilion built by the Chinese merchant Wu Jintang for his villa of 1915 in Higashimaikocho, Tarumi Ward, Kobe City, Hyogo Prefecture, and was designated an Important Cultural Property on November 14, 2001 (Agency for Cultural Affairs).

The Agency records an octagonal three-storey building of timber frame and concrete block, with a building area of 105.7 square metres, designated together with a ceremonial wand; designation number 02402.

Wu Jintang's Villa and Sun Yat-sen

Ijokaku was built in 1915 by Wu Jintang, an overseas Chinese merchant active mainly in Kobe, as part of his villa on Maiko beach (Agency for Cultural Affairs). Sun Yat-sen, a close friend of Wu, visited several times, and the building is now used as the Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall.

It is octagonal and three storeys high, about 24.1 metres in all (Agency for Cultural Affairs). A timber frame was raised and the outer walls were built of concrete block right up to the eaves. On every floor the floors are boarded, the lower walls panelled and the upper walls hung with gilded embossed leather paper, while the ceilings and other details change from floor to floor.

Why It Is an Important Cultural Property

The Agency rates it highly: an unusual octagonal three-storey form with well-ordered proportions and interiors designed differently on each floor. It is also important as one of the earliest buildings of concrete block, preserving its methods and techniques.

What to Look For

Look at the well-proportioned octagonal tower and the gilded leather paper on the walls of each floor (Agency for Cultural Affairs).

Visiting

It is owned by Hyogo Prefecture and used as the Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall (Agency for Cultural Affairs). No official information on opening hours or admission was found.