Sarureo Shrine

About Sarureo Shrine

Sarureo Shrine, on a low hill at Shimohogunji, Hanzan-cho, Marugame City, Kagawa Prefecture, worships the round burial mound behind it, the Sarureo Kofun, and has a stone torii dated 1830. Its late Meiji offering hall, late Edo stone fence and torii of 1830 were registered as three Registered Tangible Cultural Properties (structures) on March 27, 2018 (Agency for Cultural Affairs).

According to the Agency for Cultural Affairs, Sarureo Shrine stands on a low hill in the plain south of Marugame City, and its object of worship is the round burial mound behind it, the Sarureo Kofun. Steps lead up from the entrance at the east end of the grounds to the worship and offering halls, behind which a stone fence encloses the top of the mound.

Three Structures

The offering hall is a one-bay building with a cypress-bark hip-and-gable roof and panelled doors at the back as well as the front, facing the mound; it was registered as a model of design. The granite stone fence, 20 metres long, encloses the top of the mound in a square, open on the east where a path leads to the hall (Agency for Cultural Affairs).

The stone myojin torii stands halfway up the steps from the east entrance, its pillars carved with the date 1830. Together the three preserve the unusual layout of a shrine that worships a burial mound (Agency for Cultural Affairs).

Visiting and Location

No public access information has been confirmed, so respect worshippers and take care not to damage the grounds, which include the burial mound. The address is 1459 Shimohogunji, Hanzan-cho, Marugame City. The Agency for Cultural Affairs lists the owner as the religious corporation Yasaka Shrine.