Kokawa Family Residence Stone Wall

About the Kokawa Family Residence Stone Wall

The Kokawa Family Residence Stone Wall (粉川家住宅石垣, Kokawa-ke Jūtaku Ishigaki) is a stone retaining wall built in 1923 in Takabatakecho, Nara City, Nara Prefecture, and entered on Japan's register of Registered Tangible Cultural Properties on March 7, 2008. It is 52 m long.

It runs along the south edge of the plot and turns in on both sides of the forecourt in front of the gate. Of the six registered Kokawa structures, this is the one that dominates the view from the road.

Two Runs of 20 m and 32 m

The Kokawa Family Residence Stone Wall is split by the forecourt into an east and a west section. The eastern run, which bends partway along, is 20 m long; the western run is 32 m, for a total of 52 m.

The forecourt opens in front of the gate, which stands about 6 m back from the south edge. From either side of the entrance the wall turns inward along the forecourt, so anyone walking up to the gate passes between its two arms.

Cut Granite Following the Slope

The wall is built of cut Granite granite, laid to follow the slope of the road in front: 2 to 3 m high, in 6 to 8 courses. Height and number of courses vary along its length with the rise and fall of the road.

Along the top runs a line of slab-shaped Coping stone coping stones. That thin band of stone over the coursed blocks draws a clean horizontal edge and gives the long wall a crisp outline.

A Wall That Makes the Ground

Behind the Kokawa Family Residence Stone Wall the earth is piled up. The Agency for Cultural Affairs says the wall was built as one with the leveling of the plot. It is less an enclosure than the edge of the platform on which the house stands.

On the east boundary the base of the tsuiji wall serves as a retaining wall; on the south, this stone wall holds back the fill. The Kokawa house was built on ground raised above the road and shaped with stone.

It was registered for its contribution to the historic landscape. Running for 52 m along the street in Takabatake, the granite wall is the largest single element in the outward appearance of the Kokawa Family Residence.

Seeing the Kokawa Family Residence Stone Wall

The Kokawa Family Residence Stone Wall lines the south edge of the plot and can be seen from the road in front. The house is private, so the grounds cannot be entered (checked October 2026). Walking along the wall is the best way to see how the number of courses changes with the slope. There is no official guidance on photography, so avoid capturing the home above the wall. Directions to the estate are on the Kokawa Family Residence page.