Former Inoue Family Residence Garden Gate and Earthen Wall

What Is the Former Inoue Family Residence Garden Gate and Earthen Wall?

The Former Inoue Family Residence Garden Gate and Earthen Wall (旧井上家住宅庭門及び土塀, Kyū-Inoue-ke Jūtaku Niwamon oyobi Dobei) is a late Edo-period gate and wall on a village headman's estate in Kusaka, Higashiosaka City, Osaka Prefecture, registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on 15 August 2024.

The Former Inoue Family Residence Garden Gate and Earthen Wall consists of a gate at the northern end of the east side of the garden south of the main house, and an earthen wall running south from it. The gate is 2.0 meters wide and the wall 21 meters long, and both are dated to the late Edo period, between 1830 and 1868.

Framing the Way to the Main House

The Former Inoue Family Residence Garden Gate and Earthen Wall is registration number 27-0927, entered for its contribution to the historic landscape. The Agency for Cultural Affairs notes that it shapes the view along the path from the front gate to the main house.

A visitor coming through the front gate crosses the forecourt toward the main house. The wall of the Former Inoue Family Residence Garden Gate and Earthen Wall lines one side of that route, and the gate opens off it into the garden beyond. Osaka Bunkazai Navi explains that the gate leads from the forecourt into the formal garden in front of the reception rooms, so the gate and wall separate the public approach from the private garden.

A Bracket-Arm Gate

The gate is an Udekimon facing east, a simple type in which arms projecting from the posts carry the roof. Its gabled Kirizuma-zukuri roof is laid with Sangawara-buki tile and edged all round with copper.

The opening takes up the southern half-bay and is closed with a sliding board door, which needs no room to swing in a narrow passage. A short wing wall extends from the north side.

The wall running south is finished in white Shikkui plaster and capped with tile. Its line of white wall and dark tile follows the path, making the Former Inoue Family Residence Garden Gate and Earthen Wall a small internal division within the estate.

Visiting the Former Inoue Family Residence Garden Gate and Earthen Wall

The Former Inoue Family Residence, including the Former Inoue Family Residence Garden Gate and Earthen Wall, is not open to the public, and the grounds cannot be entered.

The Former Inoue Family Residence Garden Gate and Earthen Wall stands inside the front gate, around the garden in front of the main house, so it is hard to see from the public road. Photographs published by Osaka Bunkazai Navi show the gate and wall. Directions are on the Former Inoue Family Residence page.