What the Kodama Family Residence West Gate Is
The Kodama Family Residence West Gate is a timber gate of about 1901 in the Wa district of Tomi City, Nagano Prefecture, entered on the national register as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property in 2000 under the number 20-0085.
It opens westward at the southwest corner of the compound. The pantiled gable roof runs north to south over a 2-bay gate of the yakuimon type, 3.6 metres wide, with a wicket door in the right-hand bay of the same form as the one in the front gate.
Where the front gate handles the formal approach, this one takes traffic from the western side of the old highway. The compound keeps several gates of different rank, each facing a different way and doing a different job.
Why It Was Registered
The listing criterion is contribution to the historic landscape. The national register singles out the way the gate, the roadside stonework and the earthen wall raised on a stone base along the western edge combine into a masugata, the right-angled entry pocket of castle planning.
That form belongs to fortifications: the approach turns before the gate, so no one walks straight in. A farming household adopting it is part of why the whole compound is described as castle-like. The west gate should be read together with the south wall stonework and the west wall.
What to Look For
Note the gate type. A yakuimon sets secondary posts behind the main pair and places the ridge toward the front, so the weight of the roof leans forward. Compared with the four-legged front gate, the roofs sit differently.
The wicket door in the right bay follows the same thinking as the one at the front gate, letting people pass while the main leaves stay closed. Both gates were used the same way day to day.
Standing in front, look along the wall in each direction. The south wall stonework runs one way, the west wall on its stone base the other, and between road and gate the space turns a corner. The setting does more work here than the gate itself.
Visiting the Kodama Family Residence West Gate
The gate faces the public road and can be seen at any time. Since it opens west, afternoon light brings out the depth of the doors and the roof.
Passing through is possible only on café opening days; otherwise this is the entrance to a private home, so avoid lingering at the threshold. Photographing the exterior from the road is fine.
Directions and viewing conditions for the compound are on the Kodama Family Residence page.
- 📍 Plan Your Visit to Nagano
- Find tours, activities & transport passes near Kodama Family Residence West Gate
- [ Matsumoto Castle & Kamikochi Hiking Tours ]
Q&A
- When was the Kodama Family Residence West Gate built?
- The national register dates it to about 1901, the same phase as the front gate, the west wall and the south wall stonework.
- What type of gate is the Kodama Family Residence West Gate?
- A 2-bay yakuimon under a pantiled gable roof, 3.6 metres wide, with a wicket door in the right-hand bay.
- What is the masugata at the west gate?
- It is a right-angled entry pocket that stops anyone approaching in a straight line, formed here by the gate, the roadside stonework and the west wall on its stone base.
- Can visitors see the Kodama Family Residence West Gate?
- The exterior is visible from the road at any time; the gate itself can be used on café opening days.
- How does the west gate differ from the front gate?
- The front gate is a 7.5-metre four-legged gate on the formal approach; the west gate is a 3.6-metre yakuimon opening to the west.
Basic Information
| Name | Kodama Family Residence West Gate |
|---|---|
| Location | 7785 Oaza Wa, Tomi City, Nagano Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (structure) |
| Year Designated | Registered in 2000 (Heisei 12) |
| Quantity | 1 structure |
| Dimensions | Timber, tile roof, 3.6 metres wide |
| Owner | Yamatama Limited Company |
| Public Access | Exterior visible from the public road; interior closed |
References
- Agency for Cultural Affairs, National Cultural Properties Database: Kodama Family Residence West Gate
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00001822
- Tomi City: Kodama Family Residence
- https://www.city.tomi.nagano.jp/category/kenzobutsu/160195.html
Last verified: 2026.09.17
