What Is the Kato Family Residence Bathhouse and Setchin?
The Kato Family Residence Bathhouse and Setchin (加藤家住宅湯殿及び雪隠, Katō-ke Jūtaku Yudono oyobi Setchin) is a small bath-and-privy building set against the back of the gatehouse in a merchant family's compound in Aboshi-ku Yokohama, Himeji City, Hyogo Prefecture; it was built in the late Edo period (1830 to 1867) and registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property of Japan in 2009.
Yudono is an old word for a bathroom, and setchin an old word for a privy. The building is single-storey timber, 4.2 meters by 2.7 meters, under a Kirizuma-zukuri gable of Sangawara-buki tile, with a building area of 10 square meters. The registration also covers the plastered fence and the middle gate that extend from it.
Why the Kato Family Residence Bathhouse and Setchin Was Registered
The Kato Family Residence Bathhouse and Setchin was registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property for contributing to the historic landscape of the country. The Agency for Cultural Affairs notes that its distinctive exterior brightens the garden.
Baths and privies are usually kept out of sight at the back of a house. Here they sit just inside the front gate, are dressed in the vocabulary of a tea house, and are joined to a fence and a stone gate that frame the walk from the gate to the main entrance. Turning a purely practical building into one of the features of the garden is what makes it worth a closer look.
What to Look for at the Kato Family Residence Bathhouse and Setchin
The Kato Family Residence Bathhouse and Setchin is designed in the Sukiya-zukuri manner. Its walls are pierced with round and octagonal Shitaji-mado, windows made by leaving part of the wall unplastered so that the lattice of bamboo or reed underneath shows through, a device common in tea rooms. Windows of different shapes side by side give a small wall a touch of wit.
The west face is Namako-kabe, and that wall simply keeps going north to become a namako fence. Partway along stands a middle gate of cut stone set up in the shape of a torii, and passing through it brings you out beside the Shikidai formal entrance of the main house. A guest entering through the gatehouse would have walked to the front door with the patterned fence and the stone gate alongside, a route this building helps to shape.
Visiting the Kato Family Residence Bathhouse and Setchin
The Kato Family Residence Bathhouse and Setchin is part of a private home and is not open to the public. It stands inside the gatehouse and cannot be seen from outside the property.
The round and octagonal windows and the torii-shaped stone gate can be seen in the photographs on the Agency for Cultural Affairs database. Directions and visiting notes are on the page for the Kato Family Residence as a whole.
- 📍 Plan Your Visit to Hyogo
- Find tours, activities & transport passes near Kato Family Residence Bathhouse and Setchin (Privy)
- [ Himeji Castle & Kobe Night View Cruise ]
Q&A
- When was the Kato Family Residence Bathhouse and Setchin built?
- In the late Edo period, between 1830 and 1867. The Agency for Cultural Affairs database does not give a more precise year.
- What is the Kato Family Residence Bathhouse and Setchin?
- A small building housing a bath (yudono) and a privy (setchin), set against the back of the gatehouse, with a plastered fence and a middle gate attached.
- What are the windows of the Kato Family Residence Bathhouse and Setchin like?
- Round and octagonal shitaji-mado, lattice windows of the kind used in tea rooms, in keeping with the building's sukiya style.
- What is the middle gate attached to the Kato Family Residence Bathhouse and Setchin?
- A gate of cut stone in the shape of a torii, set in the namako fence and leading to the side of the main house's formal entrance.
- Can visitors see the Kato Family Residence Bathhouse and Setchin?
- No. It is part of a private home, is not open, and stands inside the gatehouse where it cannot be seen from outside.
Basic Information
| Name | Kato Family Residence Bathhouse and Setchin (Privy) |
|---|---|
| Location | 53-1 Aboshi-ku Yokohama, Himeji City, Hyogo Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Building) |
| Year Designated | Registered 2009 |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Building area 10 m² (4.2 m by 2.7 m) |
| Owner | Private owner |
| Public Access | Not open to the public (private residence) |
References
- Agency for Cultural Affairs Database: Kato Family Residence Bathhouse and Setchin
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00007520
- Himeji City: Kato Family Residence Bathhouse and Setchin (in Japanese)
- https://www.city.himeji.lg.jp/kanko/0000001734.html
- Himeji City: List of Registered Cultural Properties (in Japanese)
- https://www.city.himeji.lg.jp/kanko/0000001691.html
Last verified: 2026.10.01
