A Western Front on the Old Tokaido
The Former Igarashi Dental Clinic (旧五十嵐歯科医院) is a Western-style dental clinic remodelled from a townhouse of about 1914 in Kanbara, Shimizu Ward, Shizuoka City, Shizuoka Prefecture, and was registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property (structure) on September 26, 2000 (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
The Agency records a two-storey timber building with a tiled roof and a building area of 199 square metres, later extended; registration number 22-0070.
A Townhouse Given a Western Face
The Former Igarashi Dental Clinic is a two-storey timber building in Western style on the old Tokaido road; the plan of the original townhouse was kept while its exterior and part of the interior were remodelled (Agency for Cultural Affairs). Under a hipped tiled roof, wide glazed windows alternate with weatherboarded walls, and the entrance and the front of the added west wing carry decorative eaves boards. It is said to have been designed by a local carpenter.
Shizuoka City says it is a Meiji townhouse converted into a dental clinic, and that its painted weatherboards and other Western features stand out in a townscape of Kanbara that keeps much of the old Tokaido. The city lists it as local landscape resource (building) No. 2.
Why It Was Registered
The Agency registered it, as a Western-style building on the old Tokaido, for its contribution to the historic landscape.
What to Look For
Look for the wide glazed windows, the weatherboarding and the decorative eaves board at the entrance (Agency for Cultural Affairs). Daily Sports reports that an old dental chair survives inside, along with an upstairs "study" that can be reached only by laying a board across the stairwell.
Visiting
It is owned by Shizuoka City (Shizuoka City). Daily Sports (August 2026) reports that a non-profit group works to preserve it as the former Igarashi residence. No official information on opening days or hours was found.
Q&A
- When was it built?
- It was remodelled from a Meiji townhouse in about 1914 (Agency for Cultural Affairs; Shizuoka City).
- What does it look like?
- Hipped tiled roof, wide glazed windows and weatherboarded walls.
- Where is it?
- On the old Tokaido in Kanbara, Shimizu Ward, Shizuoka City.
- What survives inside?
- An old dental chair and an upstairs study, according to the press.
- When was the Former Igarashi Dental Clinic registered?
- On September 26, 2000 (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
Basic Information
| Name | Former Igarashi Dental Clinic (旧五十嵐歯科医院) |
|---|---|
| Location | 3-23-3 Kanbara, Shimizu Ward, Shizuoka City, Shizuoka Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Structure) |
| Year Designated | Registered 2000/09/26 (Heisei 12) |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Two-storey timber, tiled roof, 199 m² |
| Owner | Shizuoka City |
| Public Access | No official information on opening days |
References
- Former Igarashi Dental Clinic (Database of National Cultural Properties, Agency for Cultural Affairs)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/101/00001774
- Local landscape resource No. 2: Former Igarashi Dental Clinic (Shizuoka City, Japanese)
- https://www.city.shizuoka.lg.jp/s6759/s007927.html
- The curious study of a 100-year-old dental clinic (Daily Sports, August 2, 2026, Japanese)
- https://www.daily.co.jp/society/life/2026/08/02/0020661757.shtml
Last verified: 2026.10.21