Two Stone Pillars Before the Formal Entrance
Nakano Family Residence Gateposts (中野家住宅門柱, Nakano-ke Jūtaku Monchū) are a stone gateway of around 1909 on the Nakano family estate in Ifuku, Tara Town, Saga Prefecture, registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on 2 May 2017. The gate opens south of the Shikidai entrance of the main house and is 3.8 metres wide.
The Agency for Cultural Affairs describes 2 pillars of tuff, each square in section, 44 centimetres to a side and 3.1 metres high.
Why They Were Registered
The Nakano Family Residence Gateposts were registered under the criterion for contribution to the historic landscape. The Agency credits them with giving the estate a weighty, dignified frontage.
Dated to around 1909, the same period as the main house, the gateposts and the walls running off them make up the face of the estate. This is where visitors bound for the formal entrance first passed, and the solidity of the gate matches a house arranged for receiving guests.
What to Look For
Start with the corners. The Agency records them as kichōmen-dori: the edge is cut back at an angle with a small step at each side of the cut, which draws a fine line of shadow down each pillar.
Then the tops. Each pillar carries a single course of dressed stone, capped by a Coping stone coping stone with a stepped cornice moulding. The cornice widens the head of the pillar and gives the whole gate its weight.
Stone walls run from both sides, one east and then north at a right angle, the other west around the garden. Gate and wall are registered separately but form one continuous boundary.
Visiting the Gateposts
The Nakano Family Residence Gateposts belong to a private home, and the grounds are not open to the public; do not pass through the gate. How much can be seen from the public road has not been confirmed.
If you are nearby, keep the peace of the household. No policy on photography has been published. The history of the estate as a whole is set out on the Nakano Family Residence page.
Q&A
- Where are the Nakano Family Residence Gateposts?
- On the Nakano family estate in Ifuku, Tara Town, Saga Prefecture, where they form the gate south of the main house's formal shikidai entrance.
- What are the Nakano Family Residence Gateposts made of?
- 2 tuff pillars forming a gateway 3.8 metres wide. Each pillar is 44 centimetres square and 3.1 metres high.
- What details should I look for on the Nakano Family Residence Gateposts?
- The kichōmen-dori chamfered corners of the pillars, and the course of dressed stone and cornice-moulded coping stone on top of each.
- When were the Nakano Family Residence Gateposts built?
- Around 1909. They were registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on 2 May 2017.
- Can I go through the Nakano Family Residence Gateposts?
- No. It is a private home, and the grounds are not open to the public.
Basic Information
| Name | Nakano Family Residence Gateposts (中野家住宅門柱) |
|---|---|
| Location | Ko 1978, Oaza Ifuku, Tara Town, Fujitsu District, Saga Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (building), registration number 41-0103 |
| Year Designated | Registered 2017/5/2 (Heisei 29) |
| Quantity | 1 structure |
| Dimensions | Stone, gateway 3.8 metres wide; 2 tuff pillars, 44 centimetres square and 3.1 metres high |
| Owner | Not listed in the Agency for Cultural Affairs database (private residence kept by the Nakano family) |
| Public Access | Private residence, not open to the public; no entry to the grounds |
References
- National Cultural Properties Database, Agency for Cultural Affairs: Nakano Family Residence Gateposts
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00011600
- National Cultural Properties Database, Agency for Cultural Affairs: Nakano Family Residence Stone Wall
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00011601
Last verified: 2026.09.25
