Shōwa

Discover the Jomo Electric Railway Kasukawa Bridge, a 1928 steel plate girder railway bridge registered as a Tangible Cultural Property in Gunma Prefecture. Learn about its history, Typhoon Kathleen repairs, and how to visit.

Discover Nishi-Kiryu Station in Kiryu, Gunma — a registered tangible cultural property featuring rare Mansard-roof Western-style architecture from 1928. Explore this living heritage of Japan's silk-weaving capital.

Discover the Nishi-Kiryu Station Platform Canopy, a Registered Tangible Cultural Property in Kiryu, Gunma. Built in 1928 by Jomo Electric Railway, this rare wooden truss-structure canopy preserves early Shōwa-era railway architecture in a historic textile town.

The Jomo Electric Railway Watarase River Bridge in Kiryu City, Gunma Prefecture, is a 157-meter railway bridge that has been in continuous service since 1928. Featuring eight steel plate girder spans and distinctive diamond-shaped concrete piers, it was registered as a national Tangible Cultural Property in 2007. With the Jomo Line's Cycle Train service and IC transit card support, this early Showa-era engineering landmark is easily accessible for international visitors.

Discover Suikintei, a Registered Tangible Cultural Property in Takasaki, Gunma Prefecture. Designed by master sukiya architect Ōgi Rodō in 1935, this exquisite tea house features the Jiseian tearoom named by industrialist Matsunaga Yasuzaemon, and a suikinkutsu water chime selected as one of Japan's 100 Soundscapes.

Discover the Water Museum in Kiryu, Gunma — a 1932 reinforced concrete office building with distinctive scratch tile walls. This Registered Tangible Cultural Property showcases Japan's early modern waterworks infrastructure and architectural design.

Discover Suidoyama Memorial Hall in Kiryu, Gunma — a 1932 wooden building with scratch tile walls and Spanish roof tiles, inspired by Frank Lloyd Wright. This nationally registered tangible cultural property offers free admission and panoramic city views.

Just a two-minute walk from JR Takasaki Station, surrounded by modern office towers, stands a two-story wooden inn from 1932 that is still in active use today. Founded in 1879 and famed during the war years as a station-front ryokan in the military city of Takasaki—and later as a favored retreat of novelist Shiba Ryotaro—Toyodaya Ryokan Main Building is registered as a National Tangible Cultural Property of Japan, prized for its irimoya roof, gable-entry plan, and graceful karahafu entrance.

Standing in Takasaki City, Gunma Prefecture, the Niijima Gakuen Junior College Research Building is the only surviving circular schoolhouse in Gunma. Built in 1956 as the schoolhouse of Takasaki Municipal Girls' High School, this three-story reinforced concrete cylinder was designed by Kanao Sakamoto, the Japanese architect celebrated for his circular school designs. With a spiral staircase at its core and five fan-shaped classrooms arranged around the perimeter, the building was registered as a Tangible Cultural Property in 2018. Discover this remarkable survivor of Japan's 1950s architectural experimentation.

At Annaka Church in Gunma sits Gientei, a 1935 wooden study built for pastor Kashiwagi Gien, whose 459-issue monthly opposed Japan's wars and empire until 1936.

At Ōana Onsen in Minakami, Gunma, this bath sits deep in a tunnel hewn into the bedrock, where Moralogy's founder Hiroike Chikuro convalesced. It was listed in 2025.

At Ōana in Minakami, this changing room has a double cedar-bark roof and an exposed king-post truss. Hiroike Chikuro died at this site in 1938; it was listed in 2025.

At Tanigawa in Minakami stands a shrine of about 7.3 square metres enshrining Amaterasu, clad in cedar bark and built in 1936. It was listed in 2025.

At Tanigawa Onsen in Minakami stands Reitaku-kan, a single-storey retreat with a bath on its east end. Hiroike Chikuro stayed here in his final years; listed in 2025.

Discover the Hirosegawa Museum of Art in Maebashi, Gunma — a 1948 International Style artist's atelier turned museum. Japan's first postwar building registered as a national tangible cultural property, featuring Western-style paintings and vintage gramophone concerts by the scenic Hirose River.

Discover Maebashi Catholic Church, a nationally registered tangible cultural property in Gunma Prefecture. Built in 1932, this twin-towered Gothic-style reinforced concrete cathedral survived the 1945 air raids and features American opalescent stained glass, elegant vaulted ceilings, and a welcoming atmosphere for visitors of all faiths.

Discover the Yoshida Family Residence Izumisho Goten in Takasaki, Gunma — a nationally registered tangible cultural property featuring exquisite mother-of-pearl inlay, lacquerwork, and temple-inspired craftsmanship from 1927.

Discover the Karasawa Bridge, a registered tangible cultural property along the scenic Watarase Keikoku Railway in Gunma Prefecture. Built in 1912 for copper ore transport, this trough girder bridge is part of 38 heritage railway structures spanning two prefectures.

Discover the Watarase Keikoku Railway Godo Station Rest House, a charming 1928 wooden structure registered as a national tangible cultural property. Nestled in Midori City, Gunma, this historic railway facility invites visitors to explore Japan's copper mining heritage and stunning valley scenery.

Discover the World Peace Memorial Cathedral in Hiroshima, designed by Murano Togo in 1954. A symbol of peace built with global donations, it was the first postwar building designated as an Important Cultural Property of Japan.