Meiji

A formal onarimon and a 27 m riverside wall in the Hirao Family Residence, built to receive honoured guests. White plaster marks its ceremonial air. Not open to the public.

A short partition wall and bracket gate dividing the detached quarters from the main garden in the Hirao Family Residence. Its finer face marks the intended front. Not public.

A partition wall and central wicket gate in the Hirao Family Residence, dividing the quarters' front from the inner garden. Its north end runs under a neighbouring eave.

A small forecourt shelter on the ceramics storehouse in the Hirao Family Residence, with a paired-door rear gate. Its exposed gable accents the storehouse cluster. Not public.

A stone water cistern among the storehouses of the Hirao Family Residence, about 1.8 m square. Its drain feeds a 15 m rainwater channel that protected the stores. Not public.

A 10 m partition wall and stepped-up wicket gate from the treasure storehouse in the Hirao Family Residence, its two faces boarded differently. Not open to the public.

An east wall and bracket gate screening the retirement house, Hirao Family Residence. Posts carry a tie beam, boarded below and open above for a light screen. Not public.

A Meiji-era subsidiary hall at Tomari Shrine in Kakogawa, Hyogo, just 0.45 by 0.55 metres: full shrine carpentry, ikkensha nagare misedana-zukuri, in miniature.

Painted in 1890 by Honda Kinkichirō, Hagoromo Tennyo (The Heavenly Maiden in the Legend of Hagoromo) is a Meiji-era oil painting that depicts a celestial maiden soaring above Mt. Fuji and Miho-no-Matsubara. Designated a National Important Cultural Property in 2024, it is held at the Hyogo Prefectural Museum of Art in Kobe. This guide introduces the painting's blend of Japanese subject and Western technique, its painter's life, its remarkable journey across the Pacific, and how to visit.