Kōshō-ji East South Earthen Wall: The Long Wall That Completes the Street Face
Where the older wall to the north dates from the Edo period, the southern stretch of Kōshō-ji's eastern boundary is a product of the temple's twentieth-century rebuilding. It turns south at a right angle from the sleeve wall on the south flank of the Sanmon and runs on for about 45 metres, the longest of the temple's registered wall sections and the piece that carries the precinct's eastern face down the length of Horikawa-dōri.
It was built in the early Taishō years, around 1912 to 1918, the same span in which Kōshō-ji, head temple of the Kōshō-ha branch of Shin Buddhism, was finishing the reconstruction that followed the fire of 1902. Read together, the two walls set the temple's whole eastern edge: the shorter Edo wall to the north beside the Amida Hall gate, and this longer Taishō wall running south from the main gate. Between them they give the street a continuous, dignified frontage.
Why the Wall Was Registered
The wall was entered on the national register of Tangible Cultural Properties in August 2025 under number 26-0700, recognised as an element contributing to the historic character of the landscape.
Its construction follows the same logic as its northern counterpart, with a dressed-stone base carrying pillars at one-bay intervals, tied by a beam, and the eaves purlin supported on the projecting beam ends. The outer face is white plaster ruled with five stripes, the head-temple mark it shares with the north wall. One detail sets the two apart: here the eaves use widely spaced double rafters, where the north wall uses closely spaced ones. It is a small difference, but it registers the wall's later date and rewards a visitor who looks closely enough to compare the two.
What to Look for When You Visit
Start at the Sanmon and follow the wall south along Horikawa-dōri, and the length of it becomes the point: 45 metres of plastered wall carrying the temple's line down the street. Look up under the tiled cap and note the spacing of the rafters, then walk back to the north wall by the Amida Hall gate and compare. The closer spacing there and the wider spacing here is the clearest way to tell the Edo wall from the Taishō one.
The five ruled stripes run the whole way, tying the two walls into a single statement of rank along the street. Like the rest of the eastern frontage, this wall can be seen freely from the public pavement at any hour. Taken with the gate it springs from and the older wall it continues, it completes the reading of Kōshō-ji as a temple that presents a deliberate, unbroken face to one of Kyoto's main avenues.
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Q&A
- How is this wall different from the north wall?
- It is longer, at about 45 metres, and later, from the early Taishō period. Its eaves use widely spaced rafters, where the Edo-period north wall uses closely spaced ones.
- When was it built?
- In the early Taishō period, around 1912 to 1918, during the reconstruction of Kōshō-ji that followed the 1902 fire.
- Where does it run?
- It turns south at a right angle from the sleeve wall on the south side of the Sanmon and runs about 45 metres along Horikawa-dōri.
- What do the five stripes mean?
- As on the north wall, the five ruled stripes on the plaster mark the temple's rank, five being the highest.
- How is it protected?
- It was registered as a national Tangible Cultural Property in August 2025 (registration number 26-0700), for its contribution to the historic landscape.
Basic Information
| Name | Kōshō-ji East Face, South Earthen Wall (tsuiji-bei) |
|---|---|
| Location | 69 and adjacent, Hanazono-chō, Shimogyō-ku, Kyoto |
| Category / Registered | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (building); registered 6 August 2025 |
| Registration No. | 26-0700 (110th round) |
| Built | early Taishō period (circa 1912–1918) |
| Structure | Earthen wall, tiled cap; length approx. 45 m; white plaster with five ruled stripes; widely spaced rafters |
| Owner | Kōshō-ji (religious corporation) |
| Access | Southern part of the eastern frontage on Horikawa-dōri; short walk from Kyoto Station |
References
- Agency for Cultural Affairs, National Cultural Properties Database: Kōshō-ji East South Earthen Wall
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/101/00015485
- Honzan Kōshō-ji, official site: History
- https://www.koshoji.or.jp/about.html
- Honzan Kōshō-ji, official site: Buildings
- https://www.koshoji.or.jp/about_2.html
- Shinshū Kōshō-ha, temple profile
- https://www.shin.gr.jp/member/kosho.html
Last verified: 2026.07.06