What the Main Gate Is
The Yokoyama Family Residence Main Gate (横山家住宅正門, Yokoyama-ke Jūtaku Seimon) in Oaza Komono, Komono Town, Mie Prefecture, is a timber, tile-roofed gate of the Yakuimon type from the later Edo period (1751 to 1830), registered as a Tangible Cultural Property on April 3, 2020. It is 4.2 meters wide.
It stands southeast of the main house, facing south, and was repaired around 1965. It is the oldest of the six registered buildings.
According to Yokoyama Yoji's essay, the date was judged from family tradition and the weathering of the timbers. The east ridge-end tile bears an inscription naming its maker, Ihei, a tile maker of Chishaku village in Mie District, Ise Province.
How a Yakuimon Is Built
The roof is gabled (Kirizuma-zukuri) and laid with pantiles (Sangawara-buki) with a slight upward swell (mukuri), the same soft line as the main house roof.
The gateposts are rectangular in section. Two board doors slide apart in the center, and a small wicket door (Kugurido) is set in the east side bay. The head beam (kabuki) runs out to both gable ends, and there beams span from the rear posts (Hikaebashira) to carry the eave purlins. That is how a yakuimon supports one broad gabled roof over both the main posts and the rear posts.
The Agency for Cultural Affairs registered the Yokoyama Family Residence Main Gate as a model of design, register no. 24-0281. Komono Town notes that its plastered surfaces and the stone paving beneath its eaves lend dignity to the old family's estate.
Shigemori Mirei Underfoot
The paving under the eaves of the Yokoyama Family Residence Main Gate is stone, and the drainage channel running through it was laid in 1968, when Shigemori Mirei made the garden. A 20th-century garden designer's work sits at the foot of a gate from the later Edo period.
Inside the gate, a path of cut stone runs diagonally toward the front door of the main house; this entrance court is also part of Shigemori's design. The family essay adds that before then, the approach was a narrow passage to the east of the present path.
Seeing the Main Gate
On event days, the Yokoyama Family Residence Main Gate is how you enter the estate. Before you pass through, look up at the ridge-end tile and the gentle curve of the roof; the stone paving and drainage channel are underfoot as you go in.
On other days you cannot go beyond the gate. Visiting conditions and directions are on the Yokoyama Family Residence group page.
Q&A
- When was the Yokoyama Family Residence Main Gate built?
- It is dated to the later Edo period (1751 to 1830) and was repaired around 1965. It is the oldest of the registered buildings at the Yokoyama Family Residence.
- What type of gate is the Yokoyama Family Residence Main Gate?
- A yakuimon, with a gabled pantile roof with a slight upward swell, sliding board doors, and a wicket door in the east bay. It is 4.2 meters wide.
- What is inscribed on the Yokoyama Family Residence Main Gate?
- The east ridge-end tile names its maker, Ihei, a tile maker of Chishaku village in Mie District, Ise Province.
- What is the connection between the Yokoyama Family Residence Main Gate and Shigemori Mirei?
- The stone-paved drainage channel beneath the gate was laid in 1968, when Shigemori Mirei made the garden.
- Can visitors see the Yokoyama Family Residence Main Gate?
- On event days visitors enter through it. On other days you cannot go beyond the gate.
Basic Information
| Name | Yokoyama Family Residence Main Gate (横山家住宅正門) |
|---|---|
| Location | 2657 Aza Nakazato, Oaza Komono, Komono Town, Mie District, Mie Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Building), register no. 24-0281 |
| Year Designated | Registered April 3, 2020 |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Wooden, tiled roof, 4.2 meters wide |
| Owner | Waiwai Co., Ltd. |
| Public Access | Not open regularly. By reservation at events |
References
- Database of National Cultural Properties: Yokoyama Family Residence Main Gate (Agency for Cultural Affairs)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/101/00013266
- Cultural Heritage Online: Yokoyama Family Residence Main Gate
- https://online.bunka.go.jp/heritages/detail/411875
- Registered Cultural Property: Yokoyama Family Residence (Komono Town, in Japanese)
- https://www2.town.komono.mie.jp/site/kankou/2028.html
- Komono Cultural Properties Newsletter, Issue 34 (Komono Town Board of Education)
- https://www2.town.komono.mie.jp/uploaded/attachment/5102.pdf
Last verified: 2026.09.27
