The Front Gate
The Nomura Takao Family Residence Gate (野村隆男家住宅門, Nomura Takao-ke Jūtaku Mon) is a late Edo-period (1830–1867) Yakuimon gate in Doi Kakuchū, Aki City, Kochi Prefecture, registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on 12 July 2005. It is a timber gate with a tiled roof and an opening 3.6 metres wide, registered as number 39-0189.
It stands on the western boundary of the plot, a little south of centre, and is the front entrance from the lane. Visitors to the Nomura house still come in this way.
A Plain Gate with a Big Job
The Agency for Cultural Affairs calls the Nomura gate simple, yet treats it as the centrepiece of the house's street front. Walk the lanes of Doi Kakuchū and you pass long runs of hedge broken at intervals by gates; here, this gate is the face the household shows to the street.
It was registered for its contribution to the historic landscape, and from the lane you can see why: the hedges on either side and the gate's tiled roof read as one continuous frontage.
What to Look For
The gate is 2 Ken across, with a gabled kirizuma roof of pantiles whose ridge runs north to south, parallel to the lane. The main posts are 7 sun square, about 21 centimetres, and each is braced by supporting posts in front and behind, the arrangement that defines a yakuimon.
Short walls flank the opening, their lower parts clad in overlapping weatherboards. Instead of the hinged leaves usual on this type of gate, the doorway is closed by a pair of sliding doors that part in the middle.
Then look up at the tiles. According to the national record, the east face of the roof, the side facing into the grounds, uses left-handed tiles, laid with their overlap reversed. Aki City explains that Doi Kakuchū is a windy, typhoon-prone place and that roofs here often mix right- and left-handed tiles according to the prevailing wind, a trait of the quarter. Compare the two slopes of the Nomura Takao Family Residence Gate and you can see the difference.
Seeing the Gate
Because the Nomura Takao Family Residence Gate is where the visit begins, pause in the lane first to take in the front, the bracing posts and the sliding doors. Once inside, turn round to see the east slope of the roof and the rear posts.
Just inside the gate is also the best place to understand the entrance as a whole, with the wall running south and the west gable of the main house straight ahead.
Q&A
- Where is the Nomura Takao Family Residence Gate?
- It is on the western edge of the Nomura house plot at 994 Doi, Aki City, a little south of centre, and is the main entrance from the lane. Visitors enter the grounds through it.
- What type of gate is the Nomura Takao Family Residence Gate?
- It is a yakuimon, 2 ken wide, with a gabled pantile roof. The main posts are 7 sun square and are braced front and back. The side walls are weatherboarded below, and the opening is closed by sliding doors that part in the middle.
- What are the left-handed tiles on the Nomura Takao Family Residence Gate?
- They are roof tiles laid with the overlap reversed. The gate uses them on its east slope, and Aki City says roofs in Doi Kakuchū often combine right- and left-handed tiles to suit the wind.
- When was the Nomura Takao Family Residence Gate built and registered?
- The national database dates it to the late Edo period (1830–1867). It was registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on 12 July 2005, as number 39-0189.
- Can visitors see the Nomura Takao Family Residence Gate freely?
- Yes. The residence is owned by Aki City and open free of charge, roughly 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. every day according to the city, subject to weather.
Basic Information
| Name | Nomura Takao Family Residence Gate |
|---|---|
| Location | 994 Doi, Aki City, Kochi Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Building) |
| Year Designated | Registered 12 July 2005 |
| Quantity | 1 structure |
| Dimensions | Timber, tiled roof, opening 3.6 metres wide |
| Owner | Aki City |
| Public Access | Open (free, about 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., daily) |
References
- 野村隆男家住宅門 (Agency for Cultural Affairs, Database of National Cultural Properties)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00004843
- 野村隆男家住宅門 (Cultural Heritage Online)
- https://online.bunka.go.jp/heritages/detail/184753
- Aki City Doi Kakuchu Preservation District (Aki City)
- https://www.city.aki.kochi.jp/life/dtl.php?hdnKey=1381
Last verified: 2026.09.29
