A Prime Minister's Book Stack
The Viscount Saito Mizusawa Library Book Stack (齋藤子爵水沢文庫図書庫, Saitō Shishaku Mizusawa Bunko Toshoko) is a 2-storey steel-framed reinforced concrete stack building of 1932 in Kichikoji, Mizusawa, Oshu City, Iwate Prefecture, and was registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property (structure) on October 14, 2021 (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
It holds the books of a private library that Saito Makoto (斎藤實), Japan's 30th Prime Minister, built on the site of his birthplace in the old castle town of Mizusawa. The Agency records a building area of 102 square metres and an extension in 1935; registration number 03-0111. The building stands in the grounds of the Oshu City Saito Makoto Memorial Hall, where it is known simply as the stack (書庫).
Red Brick Outside, Brass Inside
The Viscount Saito Mizusawa Library Book Stack has a flat roof and walls faced with brick laid in the manner of English bond above a stone-clad base (Agency for Cultural Affairs). The brick is a skin: the frame behind it is steel and reinforced concrete. The memorial hall describes the building as Western in style, combining reinforced concrete with red brick.
Inside, a reception counter stands at the ground-floor entrance and everything else is shelving. The stair rail and the fittings are brass (Agency for Cultural Affairs). The design came from a naval engineer, and Obayashi Gumi carried out the work, according to the memorial hall.
Why It Was Registered
The Agency registered the building under the criterion for structures that serve as a model of design. Its note singles out the origin of the building as a private library put up by the 30th Prime Minister on the site of his birthplace, the brick and stone facing, the brass about the staircase, and the naval engineer behind the design.
A facility plan by the Oshu City Board of Education adds that the people who designed and built it are known by name, that the construction drawings survive, and that it was a book stack of the newest kind for its day.
The Books in the Viscount Saito Mizusawa Library Book Stack
Saito is remembered at the memorial hall for saying that anyone who read these books would understand affairs both at home and abroad. He had the stack designed so that the collection he kept in Tokyo could be read by young people in his native district. About 38,000 volumes are shelved in the Viscount Saito Mizusawa Library Book Stack today.
Periodicals account for about 29,000 items, monographs about 3,800 and works on Korea about 1,750; researchers come for the government papers of the early Showa years and the Korean material. About 5,000 further volumes went to the National Diet Library. The Saito family gave the collection to the city of Mizusawa in 1970, and in 1976 the shelves were refitted with glass doors.
What to Look For
Start with the staircase. In the Viscount Saito Mizusawa Library Book Stack it was modelled, the memorial hall explains, on a warship's hatchway, the opening that leads up to the deck, and it climbs at 52 degrees. There is even a cover over the top of the kind that keeps out waves and spray, and it can still be slid shut. It suits a library built for a man who had spent decades in the navy.
Outside, look at how the brick courses alternate long faces and short ends, and at the band of stone that grounds the walls. The view across the garden pond is worth a pause too: the tiled roof of the timber reading room in front, the red wall of the stack behind.
Visiting
The Viscount Saito Mizusawa Library Book Stack is open as part of the Saito Makoto Memorial Hall and is covered by the hall's admission fee. The hall's website does not say how far into the stack visitors may go or what the rules on photography are, so ask at the desk.
Opening hours, closing days and directions from Mizusawa Station are set out on the page for the Viscount Saito Mizusawa Library.
Q&A
- When was the Viscount Saito Mizusawa Library Book Stack built?
- In 1932, with an extension in 1935 (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
- Who designed the Viscount Saito Mizusawa Library Book Stack?
- A naval engineer (Agency for Cultural Affairs). The memorial hall names Obayashi Gumi as the builder.
- Can I visit the Viscount Saito Mizusawa Library Book Stack?
- Yes. It is open as part of the Oshu City Saito Makoto Memorial Hall, 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., closed on Mondays; adult admission is 200 yen. Ask at the desk how much of the interior can be seen.
- What should I look for at the Viscount Saito Mizusawa Library Book Stack?
- The 52-degree staircase modelled on a warship's hatchway, the brick facing in the manner of English bond, and the brass stair rail and fittings.
- What books are kept in the Viscount Saito Mizusawa Library Book Stack?
- About 38,000 volumes from Saito Makoto's own collection, strong in government papers of the early Showa years and in works on Korea (memorial hall).
Basic Information
| Name | Viscount Saito Mizusawa Library Book Stack (齋藤子爵水沢文庫図書庫) |
|---|---|
| Location | 24-I Kichikoji, Mizusawa, Oshu City, Iwate Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Structure) |
| Year Designated | Registered 2021/10/14 (Reiwa 3) |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Steel-framed reinforced concrete, 2 storeys, building area 102 m² |
| Owner | Oshu City |
| Public Access | Open as part of the Saito Makoto Memorial Hall (closed Mondays) |
References
- Viscount Saito Mizusawa Library Book Stack (Database of National Cultural Properties, Agency for Cultural Affairs)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00013909
- Viscount Saito Mizusawa Library Book Stack (Cultural Heritage Online, Japanese)
- https://bunka.nii.ac.jp/heritages/detail/598179
- About the book stack (Oshu City, Saito Makoto Memorial Hall, Japanese)
- https://www.city.oshu.iwate.jp/makoto/annai/1/2/1775.html
- The stack staircase (Oshu City, Saito Makoto Memorial Hall, Japanese)
- https://www.city.oshu.iwate.jp/makoto/annai/1/2/1774.html
- Libraries and Saito Makoto (Oshu City, Saito Makoto Memorial Hall, Japanese)
- https://www.city.oshu.iwate.jp/makoto/shogai/1621.html
- History of the memorial hall (Oshu City, Saito Makoto Memorial Hall, Japanese)
- https://www.city.oshu.iwate.jp/makoto/annai/1780.html
- Facility plan for historic buildings (Oshu City Board of Education, Japanese)
- https://www.city.oshu.iwate.jp/material/files/group/3/28368.pdf
Last verified: 2026.11.11
