Nagata Shrine Matsuo Shrine

An Edo-period shrine once kept under cover

Nagata Shrine Matsuo Shrine (長田神社松尾社, Nagata Jinja Matsuo-sha) is a late Edo-period subsidiary shrine east of the worship hall's porch at Nagata Shrine in Nagatacho, Nagata Ward, Kobe, moved to its present site in 1928 and registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on February 14, 2002. It is a one-bay Nagare-zukuri shrine with a copper roof and a building area of 0.81 square meters.

It honors Oyamakui, a mountain god who provides water and other blessings, and the Kasuga deities, the warrior gods Takemikazuchi and Futsunushi. The Agency for Cultural Affairs dates it to the late Edo period (1751 to 1829), one of the small shrines that survived the fire of 1924.

Why the Nagata Shrine Matsuo Shrine was registered

Registered as a model of form under number 28-0087, the Nagata Shrine Matsuo Shrine was, before the fire, kept inside a protective shed (ooiya), a common way of sheltering small shrines from the weather. It measures 2 shaku 3 sun by 2 shaku 1 sun, the same size and design as the Hiruko Shrine facing it across the worship hall.

The difference is how it sits. The Matsuo Shrine stands on a rounded base (kamebara) built on top of its stone platform, like the main hall and the two shrines inside the lattice wall, which the Agency says it resembles in this respect. Taken out of its shed in 1928, it was given the more formal footing of the new sanctuary.

What to look for at the Nagata Shrine Matsuo Shrine

Look at the base of the Nagata Shrine Matsuo Shrine: a rounded mound rises from the stonework, and the shrine sits on that. The Tsukuyomi Shrine immediately north sits directly on stone, so the contrast is easy to see. Then cross to the west side of the worship hall and compare it with the Hiruko Shrine; apart from the footing, they match.

Visiting the Nagata Shrine Matsuo Shrine

You can pray at the Nagata Shrine Matsuo Shrine and view the exterior freely from the east side of the worship hall; the interior is not open. The shrine holds its festival on April 2. Access and general visiting details are on the Nagata Shrine page.