About the Kajiwara Family Residence Small Shrine
The Kajiwara Family Residence Small Shrine (梶原家住宅祠, Kajiwara-ke Jūtaku Hokora) is a miniature Taisho-era (1912 to 1925) shrine building north of the tea room on the Kajiwara estate in Oshio, Himeji City, Hyogo Prefecture, registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property in 2009.
With a building area of 0.64 square meters, the Kajiwara Family Residence Small Shrine is the smallest of the estate's 20 registered structures. Its roof is thatched (kayabuki).
A Full Shrine Form in Miniature
The Kajiwara Family Residence Small Shrine faces west from a base of river stones laid in two tiers. It follows the shinmei-zukuri style in its one-bay form, with a single bay across the front.
The walls are horizontal boards, a pair of board doors opens at the front, and a narrow veranda runs around it. The posts are round. At each gable end a freestanding ridge post (munamochibashira) rises to carry the ridge, and the gable framing is based on sasu, diagonal members that meet to hold the ridge.
Ridge posts and sasu framing are hallmarks of shinmei-zukuri. The builders kept them even at a scale of less than one square meter.
Small, but Built in Earnest
The Agency for Cultural Affairs describes the Kajiwara Family Residence Small Shrine as small in size yet a genuine, carefully made piece of shrine architecture. A shrine inside a private estate, it is built like a scale model of a full-size sanctuary.
Neither the national database nor Himeji City records which deity it houses. It is registered for the part it plays in the historic landscape.
The tea room lies to its south and the Shitabara privy to its southeast, placing the Small Shrine at the northern edge of the estate's tea quarter.
Seeing the Small Shrine
The Kajiwara Family Residence Small Shrine is part of a private home and is not open to the public. Standing inside the compound, it is unlikely to be visible from the street (not checked on site).
Layout and directions are on the Kajiwara Family Residence (Nishi-Kajiwara) page.
- 📍 Plan Your Visit to Hyogo
- Find tours, activities & transport passes near Kajiwara Family Residence Small Shrine
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Q&A
- How big is the Kajiwara Family Residence Small Shrine?
- Its building area is 0.64 square meters, the smallest of the 20 registered structures on the estate.
- What style is the Kajiwara Family Residence Small Shrine?
- A one-bay shinmei-zukuri shrine with a thatched roof, ridge posts at the gable ends and sasu framing.
- When was the Kajiwara Family Residence Small Shrine built?
- In the Taisho era (1912 to 1925). Its registration dates from 2009.
- Which deity is enshrined in the Kajiwara Family Residence Small Shrine?
- The available records from the Agency for Cultural Affairs and Himeji City do not say.
- Can I visit the Kajiwara Family Residence Small Shrine?
- No. It stands inside a private residence that is not open to the public.
Basic Information
| Name | Kajiwara Family Residence Small Shrine |
|---|---|
| Location | 457 Miyanomoto, Oshiocho, Himeji City, Hyogo Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Building) |
| Year Designated | 2009 (registered) |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Building area 0.64 m² |
| Owner | Private owner |
| Public Access | Not open to the public (private home; exterior from the street) |
References
- Agency for Cultural Affairs database: 梶原家住宅祠
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00007895
- Cultural Heritage Online: 梶原家住宅祠
- https://online.bunka.go.jp/heritages/detail/154495
- Himeji City: 梶原家住宅（西梶原）祠
- https://www.city.himeji.lg.jp/kanko/0000001819.html
Last verified: 2026.09.30
