Twenty-Nine Structures Designated Together in 2020
Yasaka Shrine (八坂神社, Yasaka Jinja) at Gion-machi Kitagawa, Higashiyama Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture, had twenty-nine structures within its precinct designated Important Cultural Properties together on 23 December 2020, when the group entered the national register of designated properties. Each of the twenty-nine is an Important Cultural Property designated in 2020. The owner is the Yasaka Shrine religious corporation.
The buildings covered range widely. They include the south gate, the north wing of the west gate, the south and west purification pavilions, the votive tablet hall, the portable shrine store, the sacred horse stable, the openwork fence, the offerings hall and the dance hall, together with the main halls of subsidiary shrines such as the Matatabisha, the Shijo Tabisho east and west halls, the Otoshisha, the Omandokorosha, the Kanjadensha, the Gosha, the Jissha, the Otasha and the Hiyoshisha.
Gates, purification pavilions, fences and the main halls of subsidiary shrines were all designated on the same day. The buildings of the precinct were assessed as a body.
The Main Hall Carries Its Own Designation
The main hall at the centre of the precinct is designated separately from these twenty-nine. Its listing goes back to 17 April 1911, and its category was changed on 23 December 2020.
The Agency for Cultural Affairs records the main hall as raised in 1654 under Tokugawa Ietsuna, the fourth shogun. Its form is seven bays by six, hip-and-gable roof, a three-bay porch at the front, eaves added at both sides and the rear, a three-bay projection at the back, cypress bark.
The designation of the twenty-nine and the change of category for the main hall fell on the same day, so the whole precinct was reviewed at once.
What this article covers is the record for Yasaka Shrine, whose designation date in the database is 23 December 2020.
Shelves Without Parallel
The Agency describes the interior of the main hall in detail.
The core is divided into an innermost sanctuary at the back and an inner sanctuary in front, each fitted along its front with a shelf running the full three bays, an arrangement without parallel.
Without parallel is stated outright. Two divisions, each with a shelf across its whole width: that treatment is found nowhere else.
An outer sanctuary runs around all four sides of the core, with a worship hall attached at the front, and all of this sits under one hip-and-gable roof of cypress bark.
Innermost sanctuary, inner sanctuary, outer sanctuary and worship hall all lie beneath a single roof. One roof from outside; many divisions within.
Growing a Building by Adding Eaves
There is structure beyond the great roof as well.
Extending the scale further by adding eaves is a method of Heian-period building, and the eaves at the sides are divided into small rooms.
To make the building larger, the core was not enlarged; eaves were added instead. That is described as the Heian way, and the side eaves run not as one space but as a series of small rooms.
The Agency adds that the form of this main hall is clearly established by the Kamakura period. Raised in 1654, the building follows a form that reaches back to the Kamakura.
The assessment concludes that the hall transmits the spatial composition of Heian building and shows well the relation between medieval ritual and architecture, so that its construction in the early Edo period, carrying on that tradition, holds high value in the architectural history of Japan.
Value in Having Been Maintained
There is one further turn in the assessment.
Deep significance in cultural history is also found in the fact that this main hall has been maintained to the present day by the people who carry on the Gion Festival.
Not the building alone but those who have kept it are written into the assessment. Who maintained a property is here part of the official record.
Yasaka Shrine is at Gion-machi Kitagawa, Higashiyama Ward, Kyoto City. The precinct can be visited, and most of the designated structures stand out of doors.
Whether the interior of the main hall or the subsidiary shrines can be entered follows the shrine's practice. Check the shrine's information before travelling.
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Q&A
- When were the buildings designated?
- On 23 December 2020, twenty-nine structures within the precinct were designated Important Cultural Properties together, owned by the Yasaka Shrine religious corporation. The main hall at the centre carries a designation separate from these.
- What kinds of building are included?
- The south gate, the north wing of the west gate, the south and west purification pavilions, the votive tablet hall, the portable shrine store, the sacred horse stable, the openwork fence, the offerings hall and the dance hall, along with the main halls of subsidiary shrines including the Matatabisha, the Shijo Tabisho halls, the Otoshisha, the Omandokorosha and others.
- What marks the main hall?
- The Agency records that the core is divided into an innermost and an inner sanctuary, each fitted along its front with a shelf running the full three bays, an arrangement without parallel. An outer sanctuary runs around the core with a worship hall attached, all under one hip-and-gable roof of cypress bark.
- What is said about the eaves?
- The Agency records that extending the scale by adding eaves is a method of Heian-period building and that the side eaves are divided into small rooms, and that the form of this hall was clearly established by the Kamakura period. Raised in 1654, it follows a form reaching back much earlier.
- What else is included in the assessment?
- The Agency finds deep significance in cultural history in the fact that the main hall has been maintained to the present day by the people who carry on the Gion Festival. Not the building alone but those who kept it are written into the record.
Basic Information
| Name | Yasaka Shrine (八坂神社, Yasaka Jinja) |
|---|---|
| Location | Gion-machi Kitagawa, Higashiyama Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture |
| Designation | Important Cultural Property (structures); the main hall within the precinct carries its own separate designation |
| Year Designated | 2020 (23 December), Important Cultural Property |
| Quantity | 29 structures |
| Dimensions | The south gate, the north wing of the west gate, the south and west purification pavilions, the votive tablet hall, the portable shrine store, the sacred horse stable, the openwork fence, the offerings hall and the dance hall, together with the main halls of subsidiary shrines including the Matatabisha, the Shijo Tabisho halls, the Otoshisha, the Omandokorosha, the Kanjadensha, the Gosha, the Jissha, the Otasha and the Hiyoshisha. Edo period to modern |
| Owner | Yasaka Shrine religious corporation |
| Public Access | The precinct can be visited; most of the designated structures stand out of doors |
References
- Cultural Heritage Online: Yasaka Shrine main hall
- https://bunka.nii.ac.jp/heritages/detail/194450
- Cultural Heritage Online: Yasaka Shrine south gate
- https://bunka.nii.ac.jp/heritages/detail/550185
- Yasaka Shrine: about the shrine buildings
- https://www.yasaka-jinja.or.jp/about/architecture/
- Yasaka Shrine official site
- https://www.yasaka-jinja.or.jp/about/
Last verified: 2026.09.05
Cultural Treasures in the Same Area
All are within walking distance in the same area, so we recommend visiting them together.
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