The house at the centre of the estate
The Wakabayashi Family Residence Main House (若林家住宅主屋, Wakabayashi-ke Jūtaku Shuoku) is a two-storey wooden house built in 1928 in Inukata-cho, Hikone, Shiga Prefecture, and registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on 29 November 2016. It stands a little north of centre on a large walled plot and has a building area of 117 square metres.
The roof is a hip-and-gable (Irimoya-zukuri) form laid with Sangawara-buki pantiles. The front door is on the north side, directly facing a gate that opens a few steps back from the road.
On its own the main house tells only part of the story. A kitchen wing steps off to the southeast and a formal reception wing to the west, each set diagonally off the corner of the last, while a small Western-style wing is attached at the northeast corner. Housework, formal hospitality and Western-style entertaining each got a building of their own, and the main house is the knot that ties them together.
Why it was registered
The Wakabayashi Family Residence Main House was registered as a model of architectural design. The Agency for Cultural Affairs describes it as a large modern Japanese-style residence, both lavish and refined in its detailing.
Two features carry that judgement. The first is the eight-mat formal room, where the decorative alcove arrangement is unusually bold: the west wall opens with a large Katōmado, a window with a flame-shaped arched head. The form comes from Zen temple architecture, and here it has been brought into a family sitting room at a generous scale.
The second is the Engawa, the veranda corridor, fitted with windows of large glass panes. Glazing the veranda meant the rooms could stay bright without closing the wooden storm shutters, and the garden could be enjoyed from indoors in any weather. It is a traditional house plan brought up to date with modern materials.
The client, Wakabayashi Otokichi, was a local businessman who founded a silk-reeling and spinning company. The centre of his estate is this Japanese house; the Western rooms occupy only a small annex at one corner. The standing of a successful businessman is expressed here through the scale and craftsmanship of the main house.
What to look for
Pay attention to how the main house meets its neighbours. The kitchen and reception wings run off its corners at an angle, so the whole estate opens step by step toward the garden on the south side. The main house is where that staggered line begins.
The front door lies straight ahead of the gate. Because the gate is set back from the road and aligned with the entrance, a visitor is led directly to the main house, and from the road you can make out the big hip-and-gable roof sitting at the end of that axis.
At the northeast corner, the red tiles and chimney of the Western-style wing press up against the grey tiled roof of the main house. That junction between the Japanese house and its Western annex is one of the few parts visible from outside.
The arched window and the glazed veranda, sadly, are not.
Visiting
The Wakabayashi Family Residence Main House is a private home and its interior is not open to the public. The only chances to see the formal room and veranda are when the owner rents part of the house as event space or holds one of its occasional tea ceremony and flower arrangement events.
The exterior can be seen from the road on the north side, in front of the gate: the entrance and roof of the main house lie beyond it, with the Western-style wing to the northeast. There is no official guidance on photography, but since the building is lived in, keep to the view from the road. Directions from the station and visiting conditions for the whole estate are covered on the Wakabayashi Family Residence page.
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Q&A
- Can you visit the Wakabayashi Family Residence Main House?
- The interior is not open to the public. The house is privately owned, and its exterior can be seen from the road on the north side. The owner sometimes rents part of the house as event space and holds occasional tea ceremony and flower arrangement events, which are the only opportunities to go inside.
- When was the Wakabayashi Family Residence Main House built and registered?
- It was built in 1928 and registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on 29 November 2016, together with seven other structures on the estate.
- What is special about the formal room in the Wakabayashi Family Residence Main House?
- The eight-mat formal room has a bold decorative alcove arrangement, including a large window with a flame-shaped arched head on its west wall. The veranda is fitted with large glass-paned windows.
- How is the Wakabayashi Family Residence Main House connected to the other buildings?
- The kitchen wing runs off to the southeast and the reception wing to the west, each offset diagonally, and the Western-style wing is attached at the northeast corner. The tea room lies further southwest, beyond the reception wing.
- Who built the Wakabayashi Family Residence Main House?
- It was built for Wakabayashi Otokichi, a local businessman who founded a silk-reeling and spinning company. The names of the architect and master carpenter are not known.
Basic Information
| Name | Wakabayashi Family Residence Main House (若林家住宅主屋) |
|---|---|
| Location | 758 Inukata-cho, Hikone, Shiga Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (building), registration No. 25-0384, criterion: a model of architectural design |
| Year Designated | Registered 2016/11/29 (Heisei 28) |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Wooden, 2 storeys, hip-and-gable roof with pantiles, building area 117 square metres |
| Owner | Private owner |
| Public Access | Not open to the public (exterior visible from the road to the north) |
References
- Database of National Cultural Properties (Agency for Cultural Affairs): Wakabayashi Family Residence Main House
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00011335
- Cultural Heritage Online: Wakabayashi Family Residence Main House
- https://bunka.nii.ac.jp/heritages/detail/273492
- List of Designated and Registered Cultural Properties in Hikone (Hikone City)
- https://www.city.hikone.lg.jp/kakuka/kanko_bunka/8/2_2/4655.html
- Wakabayashi Family Residence (Shiga Association of Registered Tangible Cultural Property Owners)
- https://shiga-tobunkai.org/catalogue/koto/431
- Wakabayashi Family Residence (owner-run website, Japanese)
- https://shiga-bunka.com/
Last verified: 2026.09.26
