Taishō

Built in 1921 in Kesennuma, Miyagi Prefecture, the Former Hirano Honten Store and Main House is a two-story wooden building combining a flamboyant Western-style shopfront with a traditional hipped-roof residence. Long cherished as a landmark at the crossroads of two historic highways, it is a Registered Tangible Cultural Property.

Discover Warabe no Kura (Children's Storehouse), a Registered Tangible Cultural Property at the Sairi Yashiki museum complex in Marumori, Miyagi. This charming Taisho-era earthen storehouse showcases traditional Japanese toys and games from the early 20th century.

Tucked away in the hills of Shiroishi, Miyagi Prefecture, the small but vivid vermilion-lacquered Koshido Hall (a Registered Tangible Cultural Property) enshrines the spirits of the Miyagino and Shinobu sisters — the heroines of the celebrated kabuki revenge play "Goban Taiheiki Shiraishi Banashi."

Completed in 1923 and nationally registered in 2024, this Taishō-era worship hall in Tome, Miyagi displays masterly carvings by Tōhoku artisan Ishii Torashō.

The Main Hall of Tsushima Shrine in Tome City, Miyagi Prefecture, is a one-bay Nagare-zukuri style structure registered as a Tangible Cultural Property of Japan in 2024. Rebuilt in 1919 after the great Sanuma fire, the small wooden hall is densely adorned with vibrant carvings by Ishii Toramasa, one of the foremost shrine carvers of the Tohoku region. Originally relocated in 1614 by order of Date Masamune to guard Sanuma Castle, the Main Hall faces north — a rare orientation that reflects its unique role as spiritual protector of the castle town.

Built in 1926 and designed by American architect J.H. Morgan in the Collegiate Gothic style, the Main Gate of Tohoku Gakuin University features a reinforced concrete structure with a washed-out finish imitating stone masonry. Registered as a National Tangible Cultural Property in 2021, it has stood as the symbolic entrance to one of Tohoku's most prestigious private universities for nearly a century.

Designed by American architect J.H. Morgan and completed in 1926, the Main Hall of Tohoku Gakuin University is a three-story reinforced concrete building in the College Gothic style, clad in locally quarried Akiu stone. A beloved campus landmark symbolizing Tohoku Gakuin's growth era, it was registered as a national Tangible Cultural Property in 2014.

The Taisho-era residence at the Moritami Sake Brewery in Iwadeyama keeps a Japanese plan but adds sash windows, a bay window and a ceiling medallion. Registered in 2015.

The Yusaya Ryokan Storehouse in Naruko Onsen, Miyagi Prefecture, is a Taishō-era (1912–1925) warehouse built using a rare timber-reinforced concrete technique. Registered as a National Tangible Cultural Property in 2000, it features arched openings and washed-aggregate stone walls that reflect the eclectic architectural spirit of its era. Part of the nearly 390-year-old Yusaya Ryokan complex, it stands as a testament to the region's rich hot spring heritage.

Completed in 1921 and designed by Ministry of Communications architect Iwamoto Roku, this former telephone exchange in Kyoto's Nishijin district features a strikingly original façade akin to German Expressionism. Designated an Important Cultural Property as the sole surviving work of the brilliantly gifted architect who died at 29, the building now serves as a coworking and innovation space.

Discover Seifuso Villa in Kyoto, an Important Cultural Property and former private residence of Prime Minister Saionji Kinmochi. Explore the exquisite sukiya-zukuri architecture by master carpenter Yagi Jinbee II and the celebrated garden by Ogawa Jihei VII.

An English Tudor villa the financier Kaga Shotaro designed himself, its half-timbered shell and Jacobean rooms now a museum showing Monet and Mingei crafts.

The largest of Amino Shrine's eight registered buildings, this worship hall was rebuilt in 1929 after the 1927 earthquake, with layered chidori and kara gables.

At the center of Amino Shrine on the Sea of Japan coast stands its 1922 main hall, a compact nagare-zukuri building finely carved by its designer Kishi Kumakichi.

The Arai Family Residence Main Building in Yodo, Fushimi, Kyoto, is a registered tangible cultural property completed in 1926. This wooden two-story home elegantly fuses a Spanish-tiled Western wing with a sukiya-style Japanese parlor, embodying the refined taste of pre-war suburban living.

The two-story Romon on the south front of Imamiya Shrine was built in 1926, its three-stepped brackets a fine example of modern shrine-temple carpentry.

West of Imamiya Shrine's Romon, this 1926 corridor is a gabled, tile-roofed hall that borrows pre-medieval detail, with extended pillars and curving eaves.

East of Imamiya Shrine's Romon, this 1926 corridor is a gabled, tile-roofed hall whose carved gable, framed with a strut and projecting brackets, borrows old detail.

Standing on Shijo-dori in Kyoto's celebrated Gion district, Enma (Former Murai Bank Gion Branch) is a 1924 reinforced-concrete bank building designed by Yoshitake Choichi, the in-house architect of tobacco magnate Murai Kichibei. A Registered Tangible Cultural Property of Japan, it preserves the American-trained classical-revival aesthetics of the Taisho era, including a finely detailed parapet balustrade, and is easily seen on any walk between Yasaka Shrine and Hanamikoji.

Discover the Kawabata Yanosuke Family Residence in Kyoto's historic Shogoin district—a 1925 wooden house and atelier built for a Western-style painter who studied in Paris. Featuring a dramatic double-height studio with north-facing windows and distinctive red Western tiles, this Registered Tangible Cultural Property offers a rare glimpse into the creative life of a Taishō-era artist.