Ishikawa Family Residence Southwest Wall

Forty-One Metres of White Wall

The Ishikawa Family Residence Southwest Wall (石川家住宅南西塀, Ishikawa-ke Jūtaku Nanseibei) is an earthen wall of around 1889 in Fukae-minami, Higashinari Ward, Osaka City, registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on 27 February 2023.

It encloses the south and west sides of the Ishikawa compound over a length of 41 metres. It is capped with tiles, finished in shikkui lime plaster with a moulded cornice, and faced along its base in araidashi, a washed finish that exposes the pebbles in the render.

At its eastern end the wall begins at the site of a storehouse that once stood west of the nagayamon gate. It cuts across the southwest corner at an angle, turns north, and ends at the site of a detached reception wing that stood west of the main house. Both ends meet buildings that no longer exist, so the line of the Ishikawa Family Residence Southwest Wall also records where parts of the older house once stood.

Why It Was Registered

The Southwest Wall was registered, as number 27-0868, for its contribution to the historic townscape.

For 41 metres its white face closes off two sides of the property from the street. It is the same plastered earthen wall that the Agency for Cultural Affairs mentions in its description of the gate, the wall running west from it, and together they form the formal front of the house. The Agency gives the wall's role in shaping the historic streetscape as the reason for registration.

What to Look For

Cornice and Washed Base

Along the top runs a jabara, a stepped band of plaster built up in layers. It throws a line of shadow beneath the tiles and gives the long wall a crisp upper edge.

The base is finished in araidashi: render is applied and then washed before it fully sets, so the small stones within stand proud of the surface. It makes a hard-wearing skirt where rain splashes up from the ground. Notice the two-part composition, smooth white plaster above and a textured base below.

The Cut Corner

At the southwest corner the wall does not turn a sharp right angle; the corner is cut off on a diagonal. The wall steps back where the streets meet, opening the view for anyone coming round the corner.

A Stone-Framed Side Door

On the west side is a service entrance. Its jambs and lintel are of dressed stone, framing a pair of hinged board doors. A stone frame set into the white plaster, it is the most carefully worked part of the wall.

Seeing the Wall

The Ishikawa Family Residence Southwest Wall is the outer wall of a private property owned by Ishikawa Co., Ltd., and it can be seen from the road. The grounds behind it are not open.

The whole design is easiest to grasp by walking the outside of the plot: start west of the gate, round the cut corner, and continue to the side door on the west. Photograph from the public road only, and do not lean on the wall or touch the door. Directions to the compound are on the Ishikawa Family Residence page.