Former Koreeda Chikaari Residence

A Doctor's Castle-Like House in Sakai

The Former Koreeda Chikaari Residence (旧是枝近有邸) is a four-storey timber Western-style house of about 1931 in Mozu-Umekita-cho, Kita Ward, Sakai City, Osaka Prefecture, which in 2002 was registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property.

The Agency for Cultural Affairs records a cement-tile roof and a building area of 52 square metres, registered as a structure not easily reproduced, built by Murata Motozo.

Sakai City notes that the doctor Koreeda Chikaari designed it himself as his home and clinic.

Structure

According to the Agency, it is a four-storey rendered timber building, symmetrical on all four sides with steep flared gables and a central tower, a strikingly Western exterior.

The veranda carried on two-storey Corinthian columns and the rounded corners of the walls are also unusual.

What to Look For

Sakai City explains that the area was then dotted with irrigation ponds, and the house was designed like a lakeside castle on a peninsula jutting into Aiga Pond. Though it looks like stone, it is timber, finished in washed artificial stone.

The city adds that the builder, Murata Motozo, is said to have been one of Koreeda's patients.

Visiting the Former Koreeda Chikaari Residence

No official visitor information could be found. The exterior can be seen from nearby.

Enquiries: Sakai City cultural properties section, 072-228-7198.