What Is International Christian University Taizanso Garage?
International Christian University Taizanso Garage (国際基督教大学泰山荘車庫, shako) is a timber garage for motor cars on the International Christian University campus in Osawa, Mitaka, Tokyo, built around 1936 and registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property in 1999.
It stands just inside Taizanso's Front Gate, to the right and set a little back. The single-storey building has a Yosemune-zukuri hipped roof, Shitami-itabari clapboard walls and three doors across its south face. The Agency for Cultural Affairs database describes the roof as iron sheet, while the university museum says steel sheet. With a footprint of 36 square metres, it is the smallest of the five Taizanso buildings whose floor area is on record.
A Suburban Villa and the Motor Car
Taizanso was a villa for tea gatherings built in suburban Mitaka, well away from central Tokyo. Getting the owner and his guests out here depended on the car, which is presumably why a garage was placed just inside the gate.
The Agency for Cultural Affairs values the building as a relic of the period when cars were spreading into suburban residential areas. If the tea rooms and the Shoin were the villa's public face, the garage was one of the services that kept it running behind the scenes. Because both survive, Taizanso records not just spaces for tea but the whole way of life of an early Showa suburban villa.
Why It Is Registered
International Christian University Taizanso Garage was entered on the national register on October 14, 1999 as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Building), register number 13-0061, under the criterion of contributing to the historic landscape.
It is a modest building, one storey under a hipped roof, and its clapboard walls blend into the surrounding woods. Although it was built for cars, it sits right beside the thatched Front Gate without spoiling the scene, which appears to be what the landscape criterion recognizes.
What to Look For
The three doors on the south face say the most about the building's purpose; opened wide, they give a frontage for driving a car in and out. Given the 36 square metre footprint, it is worth imagining how many cars of the day would have fitted inside.
The garage sits just inside the Front Gate. Pass through the gate and look right, and the thatched gate and clapboard garage stand close together, so you can picture where guests arriving by car got out and how they entered the grounds.
Visiting the Garage
The interior of International Christian University Taizanso Garage is closed. The exterior can be seen on the university's special open days; during the 2026 opening it can be viewed freely without booking from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Stand where you can see the south face and its doors head-on.
The reserved guided tour on the open days also stops here, but photography is banned during the tour. Directions to the campus and the open-day schedule are on the International Christian University Taizanso page.
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Q&A
- Why is International Christian University Taizanso Garage a Registered Tangible Cultural Property?
- It is valued as a relic of the era when cars were spreading into suburban residential areas, and it was registered on October 14, 1999 under the criterion of contributing to the historic landscape.
- Where is International Christian University Taizanso Garage within Taizanso?
- Just inside the Front Gate, to the right and a little set back.
- Can I see inside International Christian University Taizanso Garage?
- No. The interior is closed; only the exterior can be viewed on the university's special open days.
- When was International Christian University Taizanso Garage built?
- Around 1936, when Taizanso was being laid out.
- What does International Christian University Taizanso Garage look like?
- A single-storey timber building with a hipped roof, clapboard walls and three doors across the south face, with a footprint of 36 square metres.
Basic Information
| Name | International Christian University Taizanso Garage (国際基督教大学泰山荘車庫) |
|---|---|
| Location | 3-10-2 Osawa, Mitaka City, Tokyo (International Christian University campus) |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Building) |
| Year Designated | Registered 1999/10/14 (Heisei 11) |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Wooden, single storey, iron sheet roof, building area 36 square metres |
| Owner | International Christian University (educational corporation) |
| Public Access | Interior closed. Exterior viewable on special open days |
References
- International Christian University Taizanso Garage (Agency for Cultural Affairs, Database of National Cultural Properties)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00001372
- Buildings of Taizanso (ICU Hachiro Yuasa Memorial Museum)
- https://subsites.icu.ac.jp/yuasa_museum/taizanso_web/build.html
- Taizanso Special Opening 2026 (ICU Hachiro Yuasa Memorial Museum)
- https://subsites.icu.ac.jp/yuasa_museum/taizanso_web/2026koukai.html
Last verified: 2026.09.24
