Two Western rooms built into a Japanese house
The Koyano Museum of Art Nishiwaki Building (Former Fujii Family Residence) Western-Style Building (コヤノ美術館西脇館（旧藤井家住宅）洋館, yōkan) in Ichihara-cho, Nishiwaki, Hyogo Prefecture, is a single-storey timber building in Western style from the late Taisho period, listed as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property of Japan on November 17, 2015. The Agency for Cultural Affairs dates it to between 1919 and 1926.
A long corridor runs west from the main house toward the detached wing, and the Western-style building opens off the south side of its eastern half. It has just two rooms: a reception room with a small pantry to the east, and a study to the west. At 49 square meters it is less a free-standing villa than a pair of Western rooms for receiving guests, plugged into a Japanese house.
The roof is a Yosemune-zukuri hipped roof in Sangawara-buki pantiles, with the ridge running east to west. The tiled roof lets it sit comfortably among the Japanese buildings around it; the walls and windows are what announce it as Western.
Why it was registered: Western design of real quality
The Koyano Museum of Art Nishiwaki Building (Former Fujii Family Residence) Western-Style Building was registered (no. 28-0627) under the criterion of serving as a model of design. Of the estate's nine registrations, only this building and the detached wing were listed on that basis.
The Agency for Cultural Affairs points to the rough-cast exterior in the manner of "German wall" stucco, the tall sash windows, the coffered ceiling with its unusual geometric pattern in the reception room, and the carefully plastered study, and calls the whole a Western design of high quality. The museum likewise presents the two rooms as Western interiors of contrasting character.
What to look for: a geometric ceiling and sash windows
The outer walls of the Koyano Museum of Art Nishiwaki Building (Former Fujii Family Residence) Western-Style Building are finished in the German-wall manner, a mortar mixed with gravel or crushed stone and thrown on to leave a rough, pebbly surface. It catches light very differently from smooth white plaster; look along the wall at a low angle and the texture throws tiny shadows.
The windows are tall sashes that slide up and down. Set against the sliding paper and glass screens of the Japanese rooms, they make it obvious that the rules of joinery change at this point along the corridor.
Inside, the piece to see is the reception room ceiling. Its coffered grid frames a distinctive geometric pattern, the feature the Agency for Cultural Affairs names specifically, so look up as soon as you enter. The study, by contrast, is finished in careful Shikkui lime plaster and kept plain. The pantry is attached to the reception room, presumably so tea and drinks could be prepared for guests on the spot.
Visiting the Western-style building
You reach the Koyano Museum of Art Nishiwaki Building (Former Fujii Family Residence) Western-Style Building along the corridor that leads west from the main house. The museum puts the corridor at about 20 meters, and this building sits on its nearer, eastern half, so the reception room door appears on your left, to the south, soon after you leave the main house.
The local tourism association says visitors can see every corner of the house, and the guided tour takes you into both rooms. Photography is allowed without flash or tripod, and the ceiling pattern photographs best in natural light from the windows with the built-in flash switched off. The rough-cast walls cannot be seen from the corridor itself, so ask your guide where you can view the building's south face from outside.
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Q&A
- When was the Koyano Museum of Art Nishiwaki Building (Former Fujii Family Residence) Western-Style Building built and registered?
- The Agency for Cultural Affairs dates it to the late Taisho period, 1919 to 1926. It was registered on November 17, 2015 (registration no. 28-0627).
- What rooms does the Koyano Museum of Art Nishiwaki Building (Former Fujii Family Residence) Western-Style Building contain?
- Two: a reception room with a pantry on the east and a study on the west. The reception room has a coffered ceiling with a geometric pattern, and the study is finished in fine lime plaster.
- What does the outside of the Koyano Museum of Art Nishiwaki Building (Former Fujii Family Residence) Western-Style Building look like?
- Its walls have a rough-cast finish in the German-wall manner, with tall sash windows. The hipped roof is covered in pantiles, with an east-west ridge.
- Where is the Koyano Museum of Art Nishiwaki Building (Former Fujii Family Residence) Western-Style Building on the estate?
- On the south side of the eastern half of the corridor that runs west from the main house to the detached wing. You enter it from the corridor.
- Can visitors go inside the Koyano Museum of Art Nishiwaki Building (Former Fujii Family Residence) Western-Style Building and take photos?
- Yes. The guided tour of the Koyano Museum of Art Nishiwaki Building goes into both rooms. Photography is allowed, but not flash (other than a built-in flash for snapshots) or tripods.
Basic Information
| Name | Koyano Museum of Art Nishiwaki Building (Former Fujii Family Residence) Western-Style Building |
|---|---|
| Location | 139 Ichihara-cho, Nishiwaki City, Hyogo Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Building) |
| Year Designated | Registered on November 17, 2015 (Heisei 27) |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Wooden, single storey, tiled roof, building area 49 m² |
| Owner | Koyano Co., Ltd. |
| Public Access | Shown on guided tours of the Koyano Museum of Art Nishiwaki Building (Sundays; other days by reservation) |
References
- Agency for Cultural Affairs, Database of National Cultural Properties: Koyano Museum of Art Nishiwaki Building (Former Fujii Family Residence) Western-Style Building
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/101/00010857
- Cultural Heritage Online: Koyano Museum of Art Nishiwaki Building (Former Fujii Family Residence) Western-Style Building
- https://online.bunka.go.jp/heritages/detail/266012
- Koyano Museum of Art: Floor Guide, Nishiwaki Building (Japanese)
- https://koyafron.co.jp/museum/nishiwaki/floor.html
- Koyano Museum of Art: Nishiwaki Building (Japanese)
- https://koyafron.co.jp/museum/nishiwaki/index.html
- Nishiwaki Tourism and Products Association: Koyano Museum of Art Nishiwaki Building (Japanese)
- https://www.nishiwaki-kanko.jp/guide/sightseeing/koyanobijutsukan.html
Last verified: 2026.10.04
