About the Kajiwara Family Residence Tea Room Shizunoya
The Kajiwara Family Residence Tea Room Shizunoya (梶原家住宅茶室しづの舎, Kajiwara-ke Jūtaku Chashitsu Shizunoya) is a Taisho-era (1912 to 1925) tea house east of the south detached parlor on the Kajiwara estate in Oshio, Himeji City, Hyogo Prefecture, registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property in 2009.
Shizunoya is a single-storey timber building, mostly thatched (kayabuki) and partly tiled, with a building area of 47 square meters. It is larger than the estate's other tea room, built in 1906, which covers 28 square meters.
Three Rooms Under One Roofline
The Kajiwara Family Residence Tea Room Shizunoya contains three tea spaces: one of four and a half mats, one of four mats, and a two-mat room with a nakaita, a board set between the host's mat and the guests' mat. With rooms of three sizes, the host could match the space to the number of guests and the character of the gathering.
The roof is a composition. The main part is a thatched hip-and-gable running north to south, with its northern half dropped lower (ochimune). A gabled section roofed in pantiles is attached on the west. Thatch against tile and high ridge against low give the building a varied silhouette.
Layers of Invention
The four-mat room has a window called a shaku-no-e-mado, literally a "ladle-handle window". The Agency for Cultural Affairs notes many other inventive touches throughout and calls Shizunoya a refined and graceful tea room.
It was registered as a model of architectural form, one of four such structures on the estate.
A covered walkway joins Shizunoya to the south detached parlor on its west, and the inner waiting bench stands to its north. Imagine guests resting in the parlor, pausing at the bench until called, and then entering the tea room: seen that way, Shizunoya is the final destination of the tea quarter.
Seeing Shizunoya
The Kajiwara Family Residence Tea Room Shizunoya is part of a private home and is not open to the public. It lies inside the southeastern part of the compound; whether its thatched roof shows above the walls has not been checked.
Directions to the estate are on the Kajiwara Family Residence (Nishi-Kajiwara) page.
- 📍 Plan Your Visit to Hyogo
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Q&A
- How do you pronounce the Kajiwara Family Residence Tea Room Shizunoya in Japanese?
- Chashitsu Shizunoya. Chashitsu means tea room.
- How many tea spaces does the Kajiwara Family Residence Tea Room Shizunoya have?
- Three: four and a half mats, four mats, and two mats with a nakaita board.
- What is the roof of the Kajiwara Family Residence Tea Room Shizunoya like?
- A thatched hip-and-gable with a lowered northern half, plus a pantiled gabled wing on the west.
- When was the Kajiwara Family Residence Tea Room Shizunoya built?
- In the Taisho era (1912 to 1925). It has been registered since 2009.
- Can I visit the Kajiwara Family Residence Tea Room Shizunoya?
- No. It belongs to a private residence and is not open to the public.
Basic Information
| Name | Kajiwara Family Residence Tea Room Shizunoya |
|---|---|
| Location | 457 Miyanomoto, Oshiocho, Himeji City, Hyogo Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Building) |
| Year Designated | 2009 (registered) |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Building area 47 m² |
| Owner | Private owner |
| Public Access | Not open to the public (private home; exterior from the street) |
References
- Agency for Cultural Affairs database: 梶原家住宅茶室しづの舎
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00007897
- Himeji City: 梶原家住宅（西梶原）茶室しづの舎
- https://www.city.himeji.lg.jp/kanko/0000001789.html
Last verified: 2026.09.30
