Konishi Choyokan Gate and Roofed Earthen Wall

What the Konishi Choyokan Gate and Roofed Earthen Wall Is

The Konishi Choyokan Gate and Roofed Earthen Wall (小西朝陽館門及び御所塀, Konishi Chōyōkan Mon oyobi Goshobei) is a gate and boundary wall of 1914 in Hashimotocho, Abeno Ward, Osaka City, listed as Registered Tangible Cultural Property in 2017. The gate is timber with a copper roof and measures 1.6 metres across; the wall is of earth under a tiled roof and runs 37 metres.

Of the six registered entries in the compound, this is the only one that can be seen from the public road. The wall follows the boundary and the gate opening sits towards its eastern end. Beyond it stands the karamon, and past that the house itself.

Goshobei, the Japanese term used for this wall, means a wall in the manner of those around an imperial palace. Cut stone is laid up to a considerable height as a base, an earthen wall is raised on it, and the whole is capped with a roof of round and flat tiles. The result is closer to a low building than to a fence.

Why It Was Registered

The Konishi Choyokan Gate and Roofed Earthen Wall was registered under the criterion for contributing to the historic character of the landscape. The other five entries in the compound were listed as models of design, so this one stands apart in the reason for its listing.

Location explains it. This part of Abeno was once a district where Osaka merchant families kept country houses. The surroundings have long since filled in with ordinary housing, but 37 metres of tile-capped earthen wall along the street still shows how the neighbourhood was built. The Agency for Cultural Affairs describes the wall in exactly those terms, as evidence of what the district once looked like.

A boundary wall is a practical thing, and its role is different from that of the ornamental karamon inside. What earned the listing was not the object on its own but the relationship between the street and the wall.

What to Look For

Get close to the tiles. The round eaves-end tiles of the Konishi Choyokan Gate and Roofed Earthen Wall carry the Konishi family crest, three oak leaves chasing one another in a circle. The same crest repeats along the whole 37 metres of eaves.

Then look at the side of the ridge. Inlaid tiles there carry the figure of a sumo wrestler. According to the Agency for Cultural Affairs this refers to the brand under which the Konishi family sold medicine. A trademark from the family business has been worked quietly into the wall of the family villa.

The stone base repays attention too. Because the cut stone is built up high before the earthen wall begins, the total height is enough to hide the grounds completely from the road. The roof above is laid in the heavy manner, alternating round and flat tiles.

The gate opening lies towards the east. It is a small opening, 1.6 metres wide, under a copper roof. Copper is the only change of material along the run, so the gate can be picked out from a distance.

Seeing the Building

The Konishi Choyokan Gate and Roofed Earthen Wall is the one part of the compound that can be seen at any time. It fronts a public street, and both the crested eaves tiles and the wrestler on the ridge can be studied from the pavement. There are no opening hours and no charge.

Inside the gate is private property and closed to callers. Do not step through even if the gate stands open. The grounds are in use as a residence and a kindergarten.

The sensible way to look at the wall is to stand across the street first, take in the length of it, then walk up close for the tiles. Following the 37 metres from end to end shows how the height of the stone base shifts with the fall of the ground. The lane is narrow and in daily local use, so watch for cars and bicycles.

Seeing the karamon and the reception buildings behind the wall requires a place on the autumn guided day run by the Osaka City Board of Education. Directions and the application procedure are on the Konishi Choyokan facility page.