The Building That Does Not Match the Others
Miyazaki Shrine Chokokan Museum stands among trees southeast of the shrine gate in the Jingu district of Miyazaki City, was completed in 1909, and was listed as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property in January 2010. It is a two-storey timber building of about 205 square meters, and it shares almost nothing with the shrine buildings on the approach.
Start with the roof. Every other registered structure here is sheathed in copper; this one is tiled, Yosemune-zukuri in form and covered with Sangawara-buki pantiles. It is also Tsumairi, entered from the gable end, with a smaller gabled porch added at the west front to serve as the entrance. The plan measures 18 meters along the ridge and 11 meters across.
Then the walls. The whole exterior is finished in Namako-kabe, square tiles bedded flat and jointed with raised plaster ridges in a lattice of white diagonals. Pilaster forms are worked up at the corners and along the line dividing the two storeys, and sash windows fitted with iron grilles are set at even intervals. The Agency for Cultural Affairs calls the result an exhibition building of distinctive design, and the word distinctive is not a courtesy here.
The purpose explains the difference. Miyazaki Shrine Chokokan Museum was built in March 1909 to display and store the shrine's treasures and books, two years after the surrounding shrine buildings were finished. A chokokan is a repository of antiquities, and this was a museum before it was anything else.
A Different Hand, and a Later Alteration
The registration, number 45-0066, was made on 15 January 2010 and gazetted on 3 February, under the criterion that the building contributes to the historic landscape of the nation.
For Miyazaki Shrine Chokokan Museum, Miyazaki City records that the ridge tablet preserved at the shrine names Sasaki Iwajirō as the construction designer. That is a different name from the one attached to the shrine buildings, which were the work of Itō Chūta, and it accounts for much of the divergence in appearance. Two designers, two years apart, working inside the same precinct on commissions with entirely different jobs to do.
There is a later chapter as well. The shrine's own account of its history records that in 1940, when the grounds were enlarged for the 2,600th anniversary of the accession of Emperor Jimmu, the Chokokan was rebuilt as part of that programme. Precisely what the 1940 work changed is not spelled out in the sources, and anyone reading the fabric today should hold the question open rather than assume the 1909 building survives untouched in every part.
What is not in doubt is that the registration covers a single building of 205 square meters, timber-framed, of two storeys, dated to 1909 in the national record.
What to Look For
The tile-and-plaster walls of Miyazaki Shrine Chokokan Museum are the first thing to read, and they reward standing still. The lattice of raised white joints runs unbroken across the entire elevation, over two storeys, which is an ambitious amount of this treatment to attempt on one building. Tile cladding of this kind was developed for storehouses, where it protects timber against fire and damp, so applying it to a display building is a statement about what the contents were worth.
The windows come next. They are vertically sliding sashes, a Western type, and each is covered by an iron grille. Set at even intervals across a tiled wall under a Japanese tiled roof, they produce the hybrid look that the late Meiji period made its own. This is a building that was trying to be modern and traditional in the same gesture, and unlike many attempts of the kind, it holds together.
Look at the two pilaster lines. One set marks the corners, another runs horizontally where the storeys meet, and together they give the box a frame. Without them the tiled surface would read as a single undifferentiated sheet.
Finally, note the setting. The building sits in trees, off the main axis, which means it is almost always seen partly screened by foliage and in dappled light. In winter, with the canopy thinner, the full elevation becomes visible from the approach for the first time in the year.
Visiting Miyazaki Shrine Chokokan Museum
Miyazaki Shrine Chokokan Museum is seen from the outside. It does not appear among the parts of the grounds for which the shrine publishes opening hours, and it is not run as a visitor-facing museum today. The interior is closed, so the building is read from its elevations while the precinct is open.
From the main approach, take the path leading southeast from the gate. The building is a short walk into the trees and the west front, the elevation with the gabled porch, is the one that faces you on arrival. There is no barrier keeping visitors at a distance, so the tile work can be examined closely.
Ordinary photography is not restricted. Bright overhead sun tends to bleach the white plaster joints; early morning or a bright overcast gives better separation between the dark tiles and the raised ridges.
How to reach the grounds, and the hours they keep, are set out on the Miyazaki Shrine page.
Q&A
- Can visitors go inside Miyazaki Shrine Chokokan Museum?
- No. The building is not operated as a museum open to visitors, and the shrine does not list it among the places for which opening hours are published. The exterior can be viewed at close range while the precinct is open.
- Why does Miyazaki Shrine Chokokan Museum look so different from the shrine buildings?
- It was built for a different purpose by a different designer. Miyazaki City records the ridge tablet as naming Sasaki Iwajirō, whereas the shrine buildings were designed by Itō Chūta, and the Chokokan was built to store and display treasures rather than for worship.
- What are the black and white walls of Miyazaki Shrine Chokokan Museum?
- They are namako-kabe, flat square tiles set into the wall with raised plaster ridges over the joints. The technique comes from storehouse construction and protects timber from fire and damp.
- How large is Miyazaki Shrine Chokokan Museum?
- It measures 18 meters along the ridge by 11 meters across, with a building area of about 205 square meters over two timber-framed storeys under a hipped pantile roof.
- When was Miyazaki Shrine Chokokan Museum built and registered?
- Built in March 1909, two years after the surrounding shrine buildings, and registered on 15 January 2010 as number 45-0066, gazetted on 3 February.
Basic Information
| Name | Miyazaki Shrine Chokokan Museum (registration no. 45-0066) |
|---|---|
| Location | 2-485-1 Jingu and adjacent lots, Miyazaki City, Miyazaki Prefecture, within the precinct of Miyazaki Shrine |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (building); criterion: contributes to the historic landscape of the nation |
| Year Designated | Registered 2010; built 1909 |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | 18 m by 11 m; building area approx. 205 sq m; two storeys, timber frame, pantile roof |
| Owner | Not recorded in the national database; the building stands within the precinct of Miyazaki Shrine |
| Public Access | Exterior viewable at close range while the precinct is open, 5:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. year-round; interior not open; no admission charge |
References
- Agency for Cultural Affairs, National Cultural Properties Database: Miyazaki Shrine Chokokan
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/101/00008086
- Cultural Heritage Online: Miyazaki Shrine Chokokan
- https://bunka.nii.ac.jp/heritages/detail/141007
- Miyazaki City, Registered Tangible Cultural Properties
- https://www.city.miyazaki.miyazaki.jp/culture/art/626.html
- Miyazaki Shrine, official site: origins of the shrine
- https://miyazakijingu.or.jp/publics/index/18/
- Miyazaki Shrine, official site: opening and closing times
- https://miyazakijingu.or.jp/publics/index/25/
Last verified: 2026.09.17
