Hiraoka Family Residence West Wall

About the Hiraoka Family Residence West Wall

The Hiraoka Family Residence West Wall (平岡家住宅西塀, Hiraoka-ke Jūtaku Nishi-bei) is a stone boundary wall in Osato, Kaiyo-cho, Kaifu-gun, Tokushima Prefecture, built in the early Meiji era (1868 to 1882) and entered on Japan's register of Registered Tangible Cultural Properties in 2022. It runs along the street on the west side of the estate. The database gives its length as 21 meters; the Agency's description gives 21.2 meters.

The Agency for Cultural Affairs registered the Hiraoka Family Residence West Wall for its contribution to the historic landscape, calling it a massive stone wall (Ishigaki) that adds to the historic scene of the castle town. Across the street from it lay the samurai quarter.

An L-Shaped Wall From Street to House

The Hiraoka Family Residence West Wall runs along the street and then turns toward the main house in an L. Inside the angle is the garden onto which the main house's front reception room looks. To the street the wall marks the edge of the property; from inside it frames the garden.

The stones are split sandstone, laid in 6 courses with continuous horizontal joints (Nunozumi). Because the split blocks are irregular yet brought to a level line at every course, up close you notice both the varied sizes of the stones and how straight each course runs.

The Curved Corner

The corner is the part to look at. Where the L projects outward, long stones are laid with their long and short faces alternating (Sangi-zumi), and the corner is given an upward curve. Instead of rising straight, it bows gently from the base toward the top, a technique shared with castle walls.

The Council for Cultural Affairs' report notes the same point: the curved corner gives the wall its weighty presence. That a farming household presented a front like this to the samurai quarter across the street is what makes the Hiraoka Family Residence West Wall interesting.

Of the five registered structures at the Hiraoka Family Residence, the west wall is the second oldest after the 1872 main house.

Visiting the Hiraoka Family Residence West Wall

Because it faces the street on the west side of the estate, the Hiraoka Family Residence West Wall is the easiest of the five structures to see. The grounds are not open, but from the street you can study the 6 courses and the curved corner.

The national database shows the whole wall from the northwest and a view of its southeast corner. No guidance on photography is published; look from the street without blocking traffic or entering the grounds. Getting there is explained on the Hiraoka Family Residence page.