What the Former Nagashima Family Residence Front Gate Is
The Former Nagashima Family Residence Front Gate (旧長島家住宅表門, Kyū Nagashima-ke Jūtaku Omotemon) is a late Edo-period yakuimon gate at the former headman's estate in Koyatsubayashi, Kumagaya City, Saitama Prefecture, registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on March 6, 2024. It stands on the south edge of the property toward the east end, facing south, with the rice storehouse on one side and the nagayabei range on the other.
It is a single-bay gate with a frontage of 2.8 meters. Low flanking walls run out to east and west, and the eastern one holds a small wicket door, a kuguri-do, for passing through without opening the main leaves. The gabled roof is tiled and gently curved. The national register classes it as a structure rather than a building.
The Agency for Cultural Affairs dates the gate to the late Edo period, 1751 to 1830, which places it with the main house, the Kido gate and the nagayabei in the oldest layer of the estate.
Why the Former Nagashima Family Residence Front Gate Was Registered
The Former Nagashima Family Residence Front Gate was listed for its contribution to the historic landscape. The official description says it tightens the composition of the estate's front, and that is literally what it does.
To the east rises the rice storehouse, built of Oya stone in the Taisho era. To the west runs the nagayabei, a white-plastered range from the late Edo period. The timber gate sits exactly at the seam between the two and pulls a stone wall and a plaster wall into a single facade. The front of the Nagashima estate is read as this trio, and the gate is its center.
The yakuimon form carried status of its own. It was widely used for the front gates of temples, samurai residences and well-to-do commoner houses, which makes it a fitting gate for a village headman.
What to Look For at the Former Nagashima Family Residence Front Gate
The detail worth your time on the Former Nagashima Family Residence Front Gate is the framing that carries the roof. A yakuimon pairs its heavy main posts, which hold the doors, with slimmer rear posts set behind them. Here a beam spans from main post to rear post, and a short strut standing on that beam supports the ridge. The ridge therefore sits between the two rows of posts rather than directly above the main ones.
You can read all this from the gable end. One of the official registration photographs was taken from the front right, looking at exactly this gable and its timbers, where beam and strut fill the triangle and show how the weight of the roof comes down.
Back at the front, follow the roofline. The tiled slopes sweep gently upward toward the eaves, so a modest gate carries a surprisingly generous roof. From the southeast corner, the curve plays nicely against the low, straight line of the flanking walls.
Visiting the Former Nagashima Family Residence Front Gate
The Former Nagashima Family Residence Front Gate stands within the Nagashima Memorial Museum grounds and can be seen on opening days. Its structure is easy to read from outside, so give it a few minutes on the south side as you arrive or leave.
Three viewpoints repay the effort: square to the front, the southeast diagonal and the east gable. From the east you also see how the gate meets the rice storehouse, and that the wicket door opens on that side. Please leave the doors and wicket as they are and avoid touching the posts.
- 📍 Plan Your Visit to Saitama
- Find tours, activities & transport passes near Former Nagashima Family Residence Front Gate
- [ Kawagoe Little Edo & Moominvalley Park ]
Q&A
- What type of gate is the Former Nagashima Family Residence Front Gate?
- It is a single-bay yakuimon with a 2.8-meter frontage. Rear posts stand behind the main posts, and a strut on the beam between them carries the ridge. The gabled roof is tiled and gently curved.
- How old is the Former Nagashima Family Residence Front Gate?
- The Agency for Cultural Affairs dates it to the late Edo period, 1751 to 1830, the same period as the main house, the Kido gate and the nagayabei.
- When was the Former Nagashima Family Residence Front Gate registered as a cultural property?
- It was registered on March 6, 2024, as contributing to the historic landscape, on the same day as the estate's other seven structures.
- Where is the wicket door on the Former Nagashima Family Residence Front Gate?
- It is set in the flanking wall on the east side, next to the Taisho-era stone rice storehouse.
- Where is the best place to see the framing of the Former Nagashima Family Residence Front Gate?
- Go around to the gable end at the side. From there you can see the beam between main and rear posts and the strut that holds up the ridge.
Basic Information
| Name | Former Nagashima Family Residence Front Gate |
|---|---|
| Location | 1022 Ozakai, Koyatsubayashi, Kumagaya City, Saitama Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Building) |
| Year Designated | Registered March 6, 2024 |
| Quantity | 1 structure |
| Dimensions | Frontage 2.8 meters |
| Owner | Nagashima Memorial Foundation |
| Public Access | Exterior viewable on the Nagashima Memorial Museum grounds (admission charged) |
References
- Database of National Cultural Properties (Agency for Cultural Affairs): Former Nagashima Family Residence Front Gate
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00014742
- Kumagaya City: Eight structures of the Former Nagashima Family Residence registered (Japanese)
- https://www.city.kumagaya.lg.jp/about/soshiki/kyoiku/kounanbunkazaicenter/oshirase/ta22160120240.html
- Saitama Prefecture: New Registered Tangible Cultural Properties in Kumagaya City (Japanese)
- https://www.pref.saitama.lg.jp/f2216/news/page/news2023112402.html
- Nagashima Memorial Museum: Hours, admission and access (Japanese)
- https://nagashimakinenkan.com/guide.html
Last verified: 2026.09.24
