Hatakoshi Family Residence Gate

What the Hatakoshi Family Residence Gate Is

The Hatakoshi Family Residence Gate (波多腰家住宅門, Hatakoshi-ke Jūtaku Mon) is a Taisho-era (1912 to 1926) timber munamon, a single-ridged roofed gate, in the Hata district of Matsumoto City, Nagano Prefecture, entered on the national register as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on 28 April 2000 under the number 20-0044.

It opens in the fence that separates the forecourt in front of the main house from the storehouses to the northwest. The gate is braced from behind and covered by a gabled roof of pantiles. It is 2 metres wide, with board fencing attached.

The posts and doors are relatively tall, and the double doors are latticed. Tile-capped wing walls (sodobei) extend on both sides.

Between the Forecourt and the Working Yard

The Hatakoshi Family Residence Gate was registered for its contribution to the historic landscape. The Agency for Cultural Affairs describes it, with its tiled wing walls, as a key element in the look of the garden.

Inside the compound, this gate divides two kinds of space. To the south is the forecourt facing the formal entrance of the main house, where guests were received. To the north is the yard of the rice storehouse and the barn, the working side of the household.

Latticed doors suit that boundary. Even when closed they let you see through, and they do not get in the way of the constant coming and going of people and goods to the working yard.

What to Look For

The comparison to make is with the middle gate. That gate is of the same Taisho-era munamon type and the same 2 metres wide, but it has solid board doors that block the view. The middle gate divides the forecourt from the garden of the reception rooms; this one divides the forecourt from the working yard; the doors change to match.

Notice also the height of the frame. The Agency for Cultural Affairs remarks that the posts and doors are built relatively tall, perhaps to leave room for loads carried through to the storehouses.

Visiting the Hatakoshi Family Residence Gate

The gate stands inside the compound, between the forecourt and the storehouses, and belongs to a private home. It is not possible to go in and see it close up.

Directions and viewing conditions for the whole compound are on the Hatakoshi Family Residence page.