A Village Office of 1916
The Asahi Town Folk Museum (Former Asahi Village Office) (朝日町資料館（旧朝日村役場）, Asahi-chō Shiryōkan) is the former office of Asahi Village, built in 1916 at Obuke, Asahi Town, Mie District, Mie Prefecture, and registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property (structure) on February 15, 2000 (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
The Agency for Cultural Affairs records a two-storey timber building with a tiled roof and a building area of 135 square metres; registration number 24-0023, owned by Asahi Town.
From Village Office to Museum
The Agency for Cultural Affairs notes that old Asahi Village was a rest stop on the Tokaido between the post towns of Kuwana and Yokkaichi. According to the Asahi Town Museum of History, the building served as the village office, was turned into a community hall when a new office was built in 1964, and opened as the Asahi Town Folk Museum in 1978.
It mainly displays folk materials (Asahi Town Museum of History); Mie Prefecture mentions everyday goods and farm tools of the Taisho and Showa periods.
Why It Was Registered
The Asahi Town Folk Museum was registered as a structure contributing to the historic landscape of the country. The Agency for Cultural Affairs calls it a good example of a local government office, with offices downstairs and the assembly hall upstairs.
What to Look For
The two-storey timber building has a hipped pantiled roof and clapboard walls, with a gabled porch near the centre of the front decorated with a Gegyo gable pendant (Agency for Cultural Affairs). The Asahi Town Museum of History notes that the roof is framed with trusses.
The plan, with offices on the ground floor and the assembly hall above, preserves the look of a Taisho-period village office (Asahi Town Museum of History). Nearby Asahi Elementary School has a round school building that is also a Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Mie Prefecture).
Visiting
According to Asahi Town, the museum is open on Wednesdays and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and closed on public holidays and from December 28 to January 4. On open days call the museum (059-377-2938); on other days call the town's education and culture facility (059-377-6111).
The address is 872 Obuke, Asahi Town (Agency for Cultural Affairs). The Mie Prefecture Tourism Federation says it is just by Ise-Asahi Station on the Kintetsu Nagoya Line, or about 10 minutes by car from the Kuwana interchange of the Higashi-Meihan Expressway.
Q&A
- When was the Asahi Town Folk Museum building built?
- In 1916, as the office of Asahi Village (Agency for Cultural Affairs; Asahi Town Museum of History).
- What are the building's main features?
- A two-storey timber building with a hipped roof, clapboard walls and a gabled porch with a gable pendant; offices were downstairs and the assembly hall upstairs (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
- What is on display?
- Mainly folk materials, including everyday goods and farm tools of the Taisho and Showa periods (Asahi Town Museum of History; Mie Prefecture).
- When is the Asahi Town Folk Museum open?
- On Wednesdays and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., closed on public holidays and over the New Year (Asahi Town).
- When was the Asahi Town Folk Museum registered?
- On February 15, 2000.
Basic Information
| Name | Asahi Town Folk Museum (Former Asahi Village Office) (朝日町資料館（旧朝日村役場）) |
|---|---|
| Location | 872 Obuke, Asahi Town, Mie District, Mie Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Structure) |
| Year Designated | Registered 2000/02/15 (Heisei 12) |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Two-storey timber building, tiled roof, building area 135 square metres |
| Owner | Asahi Town |
| Public Access | Open as a museum (Wednesdays and Saturdays, 10:00 to 16:00) |
References
- Asahi Town Folk Museum (Database of National Cultural Properties, Agency for Cultural Affairs)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/101/00001519
- Asahi Town Folk Museum (Asahi Town Museum of History digital museum, Japanese)
- https://asahitown-museum.com/post-210.html
- Folk Museum (Asahi Town, Japanese)
- https://www2.town.asahi.mie.jp/www/contents/1001000000561/index.html
- Asahi Town Folk Museum (Kanko Mie, Japanese)
- https://www.kankomie.or.jp/spot/4595
- Asahi Town Folk Museum and Asahi Elementary School round building (Mie Prefecture, Japanese)
- https://www.pref.mie.lg.jp/MOVIE/v1136900131.htm
Last verified: 2026.10.14