A Garden Gate Between Two Houses
Tottori Family Residence East Gate (鳥取家住宅東門, Tottori-ke Jūtaku Higashi-mon) is an early-Showa garden gate in Toyonaka-cho, Mitoyo City, Kagawa Prefecture, registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on 14 October 2021.
It stands between the Main House and the New Zashiki, dividing the inner courtyard. It is an udegi-mon, a simple gate whose small roof rests on arms projecting from the tops of the posts, with an opening of 1.4 metres. One continuous gabled roof (Kirizuma-zukuri) of Sangawara-buki tile covers both the gate and its flanking walls (Sodobei), and together they run 4.3 metres. The Agency for Cultural Affairs dates it to the early Showa period, between 1926 and 1945.
According to the owner's website, when Tottori Fujio built the New Zashiki he also laid out new gardens and gates, and the East Gate belongs to that work.
Why It Was Registered: Careful Craftsmanship
The Tottori Family Residence East Gate was registered for its contribution to the historic landscape. The official description calls it a gate and wall of careful workmanship.
The roof Taruki are set in pairs with gaps between them, a spacing called fukiyose. A buttress post stands on the west side to brace the main posts, and the plank doors swing open in two leaves.
The flanking walls are earthen, with Shitami-itabari clapboard at the base and an Osa-ranma of fine vertical slats along the top. Earth, board and lattice stacked in three bands give a short stretch of wall a surprising amount of character.
What to Look For
Look up under the eaves of the Tottori Family Residence East Gate to see the paired rafters, which set a two-beat rhythm of light and shadow across the underside of the roof.
The slatted band at the top of the walls lets a glimpse of the courtyard through even when the gate is shut, softening the boundary between the Main House and the New Zashiki.
Visiting
The East Gate stands inside the compound, in the courtyard between the two houses, and is not open to the public. Guests at the New Zashiki guesthouse stay within sight of it. No photography rules are posted.
Directions and visiting conditions are on the Tottori Family Residence page.
Q&A
- Where is the Tottori Family Residence East Gate?
- Between the Main House and the New Zashiki, dividing the inner courtyard. Because it is inside the compound, it is not open to the public.
- What type of gate is the Tottori Family Residence East Gate?
- An udegi-mon with an opening of 1.4 metres, its gabled tile roof continuing over the flanking walls.
- What are the walls beside the Tottori Family Residence East Gate like?
- Earthen walls with clapboard at the base and a slatted osa-ranma band at the top; gate and walls together run 4.3 metres.
- When was the Tottori Family Residence East Gate built?
- In the early Showa period, between 1926 and 1945, according to the Agency for Cultural Affairs.
- Why was the Tottori Family Residence East Gate registered?
- As a carefully made gate and wall, under the criterion of contributing to the historic landscape.
Basic Information
| Name | Tottori Family Residence East Gate |
|---|---|
| Location | 1764-1 Kasada Kasaoka Goemon, Toyonaka-cho, Mitoyo City, Kagawa Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Building), No. 37-0460 |
| Year Designated | Registered 2021/10/14 (Reiwa 3) |
| Quantity | 1 structure |
| Dimensions | Timber, tiled roof, opening 1.4 metres, total length 4.3 metres |
| Owner | Private individual |
| Public Access | Not open to the public (inner courtyard gate; contact the owner in advance) |
References
- Agency for Cultural Affairs, Database of National Cultural Properties: Tottori Family Residence East Gate
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00014105
- Cultural Heritage Online: Tottori Family Residence East Gate
- https://bunka.nii.ac.jp/heritages/detail/553985
- Kagawa Prefectural Board of Education: Registered Tangible Cultural Properties in Kagawa
- https://www.pref.kagawa.lg.jp/kenkyoui/shogaigakushu/bunkazai/culturalassets/culturalassets_16.html
- Guesthouse Kachoen, official site of the owner
- https://www.kachoen.jp/
Last verified: 2026.09.26
