What the Uda Mikumari Shrine Subordinate Kasuga Shrine Main Hall Is
The Uda Mikumari Shrine Subordinate Kasuga Shrine Main Hall (宇太水分神社末社春日神社本殿, Uda Mikumari Jinja Massha Kasuga Jinja Honden) is a middle Muromachi-period hall for a subordinate shrine within Uda Mikumari Shrine in Furuichiba, Utano, Uda City, Nara Prefecture, designated an Important Cultural Property on March 20, 1954.
It stands on the raised terrace to the right of the three main halls, with the Munakata Shrine hall beside it. It is a one-bay Kasuga-zukuri hall of the sumigi-iri type, roofed with cypress bark. The Agency for Cultural Affairs places it in the middle Muromachi period, which it gives as the span 1393 to 1466.
According to the Japan Travel Bureau Foundation's register of tourism resources, this area was an estate of Kasuga Taisha and Kofukuji, the great shrine and temple of Nara, in the Muromachi period, and the Kasuga deity was invited here for that reason. The Uda Mikumari Shrine Subordinate Kasuga Shrine Main Hall brought the god of the estate's proprietors into the grounds of the local water shrine.
Why the Uda Mikumari Shrine Subordinate Kasuga Shrine Main Hall Is an Important Cultural Property
The Agency for Cultural Affairs database gives no written commentary on the Uda Mikumari Shrine Subordinate Kasuga Shrine Main Hall; it lists only the period, the form and the roofing material. Its significance becomes clear once you set it beside the main hall next door.
The three main halls were raised in 1320, in the Kamakura period, in the sumigi-iri Kasuga form. This subordinate hall was built in the same precinct, in the same form, roughly a century later. The Japan Travel Bureau Foundation's register describes it as a little smaller than the main hall. With the Kamakura halls and the Muromachi hall standing on one terrace, you can see in a single place how this version of the Kasuga style was carried forward.
It was designated on March 20, 1954, on the same day as the Munakata Shrine hall beside it.
What to Look For at the Uda Mikumari Shrine Subordinate Kasuga Shrine Main Hall
At the Uda Mikumari Shrine Subordinate Kasuga Shrine Main Hall, begin with the junction between the porch roof over the front, the Kōhai, and the main roof. The two are framed as one, with corner rafters at the left and right front corners. That joint is the defining feature of the sumigi-iri type, and on a hall this small the whole roof fits into a single view, which makes the form easy to grasp.
Then compare it with the First Hall of the main hall. When carpenters built the same form smaller and a century later, what changed and what stayed the same? Watch the curve of the roof, how far the porch projects and the thickness of the posts. The Japan Travel Bureau Foundation's register singles out the two subordinate halls for the way their vermilion stands out against white walls despite their size.
Nara Prefecture's survey list records that the Uda Mikumari Shrine Subordinate Kasuga Shrine Main Hall was re-roofed in 1959 and had its roof repaired after disaster damage in 1972. The roof and paintwork were restored in fiscal 2003.
Visiting the Uda Mikumari Shrine Subordinate Kasuga Shrine Main Hall
The Uda Mikumari Shrine Subordinate Kasuga Shrine Main Hall shares the terrace with the main hall, so on an ordinary visit you see it from in front of the worship hall together with the three main halls. Because the hall is small, its details are hard to read from that distance.
For a closer look, apply for the special viewing inside the sacred fence. According to the Japan Travel Bureau Foundation, visitors who ask at the shrine office can enter the enclosure for a fee and see the subordinate shrines along with the main hall. The interior is not open, and no photography rules have been published, so ask at the shrine office if you want to take pictures.
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Q&A
- When was the Uda Mikumari Shrine Subordinate Kasuga Shrine Main Hall built?
- In the middle Muromachi period. The Agency for Cultural Affairs gives the date range as 1393 to 1466.
- Why does the Uda Mikumari Shrine Subordinate Kasuga Shrine Main Hall stand at Uda Mikumari Shrine?
- According to the Japan Travel Bureau Foundation's register, the area was an estate of Kasuga Taisha and Kofukuji in the Muromachi period, and the Kasuga deity was invited here for that reason.
- How does the Uda Mikumari Shrine Subordinate Kasuga Shrine Main Hall differ from the main hall beside it?
- Both are one-bay sumigi-iri Kasuga-style halls with cypress-bark roofs. The main hall dates from 1320 in the Kamakura period; the Kasuga Shrine hall was built later, in the middle Muromachi period, and on a slightly smaller scale.
- When was the Uda Mikumari Shrine Subordinate Kasuga Shrine Main Hall designated?
- It was designated an Important Cultural Property on March 20, 1954, the same day as the Munakata Shrine hall next to it.
- Can I see the Uda Mikumari Shrine Subordinate Kasuga Shrine Main Hall up close?
- Yes, through the paid special viewing inside the sacred fence, arranged at the shrine office. Confirm the hours and fee with the shrine in advance.
Basic Information
| Name | Uda Mikumari Shrine Subordinate Kasuga Shrine Main Hall |
|---|---|
| Location | Furuichiba, Utano Ward, Uda City, Nara Prefecture |
| Designation | Important Cultural Property (Building) |
| Year Designated | March 20, 1954 |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Not listed in the Agency for Cultural Affairs database (one-bay sumigi-iri Kasuga-style hall, cypress-bark roof) |
| Owner | Uda Mikumari Shrine |
| Public Access | Viewable from in front of the worship hall; paid special viewing inside the sacred fence on request at the shrine office; interior closed |
References
- Database of National Cultural Properties (Agency for Cultural Affairs): Uda Mikumari Shrine Subordinate Kasuga Shrine Main Hall
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/102/2759
- Database of National Cultural Properties (Agency for Cultural Affairs): Uda Mikumari Shrine Main Hall (First Hall)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/102/2756
- Nara Prefecture: Survey list of nationally designated buildings (PDF, Japanese)
- https://www.pref.nara.jp/secure/324118/6.pdf
- Japan Travel Bureau Foundation, Register of Tourism Resources: Uda Mikumari Shrine (Japanese)
- https://tabi.jtb.or.jp/res/290093-
Last verified: 2026.10.06
