A Fireproof Storehouse for the Nogi Relics
The Nogi Shrine Treasure Museum (乃木神社宝物館, Nogi-jinja Hōmotsukan) is a 2-storey Dozo-zukuri storehouse in the grounds of Nogi Shrine in Momoyama-chō, Fushimi Ward, Kyoto City, built around 1916 and entered on Japan's national register as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on 13 March 2025. It was built with the shrine to hold and display the belongings of General Nogi Maresuke and his wife Shizuko, and it stands on a raised base in the northeast corner of the precinct, facing west, just north of the Memorial Hall.
The roof is a simple gable (Kirizuma-zukuri) entered on the long side and covered in Hongawarabuki tile. The walls are finished in white Shikkui plaster, and the ground floor is wrapped in Namako-kabe, square tiles set in raised plaster joints that make a bold diagonal grid. The footprint is 54 square metres. Kokugakuin University's encyclopedia of shrine museums notes that the storehouse form was chosen with fire in mind: the building's shape follows directly from its job of keeping the relics safe.
A Shrine in the Attic
The Nogi Shrine Treasure Museum was registered for its contribution to the historic landscape, the same criterion as the Memorial Hall. The official description highlights the weight and solidity of its exterior.
What the description dwells on, though, is upstairs. The upper floor holds a small shrine to the Nogi couple, and the roof above it is carried on a distinctive structure: double tiers of Kōryō rainbow beams with bachi-zuka, short struts that taper toward the bottom like a shamisen plectrum. An ordinary storehouse would make do with a plain roof frame; here the carpenters used the vocabulary of temple and shrine building, which suggests the upper floor was treated as a place of worship as well as storage. One of the two official record photographs looks up at exactly this ceiling.
No renovation is recorded for the Nogi Shrine Treasure Museum, so it may preserve its original form more closely than its neighbours. The shrine says frankly, however, that both the building and its contents have deteriorated in recent years and are becoming harder to maintain each year. Registration came against that background.
What Is on Display
According to the shrine, the museum holds more than a hundred objects and shows a selection. Many were keepsakes distributed to relatives and friends after the couple's deaths and later donated when the shrine was founded.
Expect handwritten letters and Nogi's will, swords and armour, and the frugal household goods of a couple known for plain living. The shrine's list of regular exhibits includes wooden portrait statues of the general and Shizuko by Hasegawa Eisaku, an iron cuirass attributed to the Myōchin armourers, boots and shoes that Nogi had made without left or right so they could be pulled on in a hurry, a tailcoat ordered for his trip to Britain and a walking stick made from a rifle barrel. Kokugakuin's encyclopedia also mentions the saddle of Su, the white horse given to Nogi by the Russian general Stessel after Port Arthur.
Among the textiles is the gown Shizuko wore to celebrate Emperor Meiji's silver wedding anniversary. The shrine calls it the only Meiji-era woman's gown in Japan to survive complete with its corset and petticoats. That is the shrine's own claim; no independent comparative study has been found to confirm it.
Visiting the Treasure Museum
The Nogi Shrine Treasure Museum is open 9 a.m. until 4 p.m.; entry costs 100 yen for adults and secondary students and 50 yen for elementary pupils, according to the Kyoto Tourism Federation. It opens every day with occasional closures, and the shrine warns that it may shut in heavy rain or strong wind.
Follow posted signs and staff guidance on photography inside, and ask on arrival whether the upper-floor shrine and roof structure can be seen. The exterior, especially the ground-floor namako-kabe, is visible freely from the grounds. Hours and directions for the shrine as a whole are covered on the Nogi Shrine page.
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Q&A
- What kind of building is the Nogi Shrine Treasure Museum?
- It is a 2-storey plastered storehouse of around 1916 in the grounds of Nogi Shrine in Fushimi, Kyoto, with a tiled gable roof and namako-kabe tile walls on the ground floor, covering 54 square metres. It was registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on 13 March 2025.
- What are the opening hours and admission fee of the Nogi Shrine Treasure Museum?
- It is open 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. Entry is 100 yen for adults and secondary students and 50 yen for elementary pupils, according to the Kyoto Tourism Federation. It may close in heavy rain or strong wind.
- What can you see in the Nogi Shrine Treasure Museum?
- A selection from more than a hundred objects: General Nogi's letters and will, swords and armour, household goods, portrait statues of the couple by Hasegawa Eisaku, his left-right-less boots and Shizuko's gown.
- What is on the upper floor of the Nogi Shrine Treasure Museum?
- According to the national record, a small shrine to the Nogi couple, under a distinctive roof frame of double rainbow beams and tapered struts. Ask on site whether it can be viewed.
- Why was the Nogi Shrine Treasure Museum registered?
- It was registered, as number 26-0682, for its contribution to the historic landscape; its solid storehouse exterior on a raised base is part of the character of the shrine grounds.
Basic Information
| Name | Nogi Shrine Treasure Museum (乃木神社宝物館, Nogi-jinja Hōmotsukan) |
|---|---|
| Location | 37-1 Itakura Suo, Momoyama-cho, Fushimi-ku, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture, and adjoining lots |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Building), No. 26-0682; criterion: contributes to the historic landscape |
| Year Designated | Registered 2025/3/13 (Reiwa 7) |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Storehouse construction, 2 storeys, gabled roof entered on the long side, hongawara tile; building area 54 square metres |
| Owner | Religious Corporation Nogi Shrine |
| Public Access | Open as a museum 9 a.m. until 4 p.m., 100 yen adults, 50 yen elementary pupils (may close in heavy rain or strong wind) |
References
- Database of National Cultural Properties (Agency for Cultural Affairs) — 乃木神社宝物館 (Treasure Museum)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/101/00015321
- Kyoto Tourism Federation — 乃木神社宝物館 (Treasure Museum)
- https://www.kyoto-kankou.or.jp/info_search/3568
- Kokugakuin University, Encyclopedia of Shrine Museums — 乃木神社宝物館・記念館・復元旧邸
- https://www2.kokugakuin.ac.jp/museum/jinja/26/26_nogi.html
- Kyoto City Tourism Association (Kyoto Kanko Navi) — 乃木神社 site plaque text
- https://ja.kyoto.travel/tourism/single02.php?category_id=9&tourism_id=426
Last verified: 2026.09.25
