A Campus of Uchida Gothic Buildings
The University of Tokyo Hongo Campus (東京大学本郷キャンパス, Tokyo Daigaku Hongo Kyanpasu) is the main campus of the University of Tokyo in Hongo, Bunkyo City, Tokyo, where seven structures, the Great Hall (Yasuda Auditorium), the Hongo Main Gate and Guardhouse, Law and Letters Buildings 1 and 2, Law Building 3, Engineering Building 1 and the Reppinkan, were registered in 1996 and 1998 as Registered Tangible Cultural Properties.
The Agency for Cultural Affairs records the Great Hall as registered on 20 December 1996 and the other six on 9 October 1998. All belong to the University of Tokyo.
The university notes that the Great Hall was the very first building entered in the national register.
History and Uchida Gothic
According to the university, most of the Meiji-era buildings on the Hongo campus were destroyed in the Great Kanto Earthquake of 1 September 1923. Rebuilding began the next year under Uchida Yoshikazu, professor of engineering and later the university's 14th president, and the campus had largely taken its present form by the Showa 10s.
Most prewar buildings are in the style known as Uchida Gothic, which Uchida devised for the earthquake reconstruction. Because Hongo suffered little damage in the Second World War, these buildings still stand.
Of the seven registered, only the main gate predates the earthquake: it was built in 1912 to a design by Ito Chuta of the architecture department. The other six were all designed by Uchida.
Layout: From the Main Gate to Yasuda Auditorium
The Agency describes the campus's main axis as the east-west line joining the main gate and the Great Hall. Inside the gate, Yasuda Auditorium closes the view, with Law and Letters Buildings 1 and 2 facing each other across the axis in front of it.
Law Building 3 stands just to the right of the gate and the Reppinkan to the left further in, also facing each other across the axis. Engineering Building 1 lies on the axis leading to the General Library.
Walking from the main gate to Yasuda Auditorium, between buildings with Gothic-style arches, is the best way to experience Uchida's campus plan.
Visiting the University of Tokyo Hongo Campus
The university says the Hongo campus is open for self-guided visits to outdoor areas and public spaces; faculty buildings and classrooms are generally closed to visitors. Groups of fewer than about 15 need no arrangements; larger groups must register online at least seven days in advance.
There is no visitor parking and visitors must not come by car. The campus is closed on the days of the national university entrance test and the university's second-stage examinations. Photography is allowed, but images are for personal use only and should not be published or posted on social media.
The university lists Todaimae Station on the Tokyo Metro Namboku Line (1 minute on foot), Hongo-sanchome Station on the Marunouchi Line (8 minutes) or Oedo Line (6 minutes), and Yushima or Nezu Station on the Chiyoda Line (8 minutes). The Akamon red gate is under seismic retrofit until about September 2027 (as of November 2025).
References
- Agency for Cultural Affairs Database: Great Hall (Yasuda Auditorium) (Japanese)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00000035
- Agency for Cultural Affairs Database: Hongo Main Gate and Guardhouse (Japanese)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00000815
- Agency for Cultural Affairs Database: Law and Letters Building 1 (Japanese)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00000817
- Agency for Cultural Affairs Database: Law Building 3 (Japanese)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00000819
- University of Tokyo: Registered Tangible Cultural Properties (Japanese)
- https://www.u-tokyo.ac.jp/ja/about/campus-guide/b07_04_b.html
- University of Tokyo: Visiting the Hongo Campus (Japanese)
- https://www.u-tokyo.ac.jp/ja/about/campus-guide/public02_05.html
- University of Tokyo: Hongo Access Map (Japanese)
- https://www.u-tokyo.ac.jp/ja/about/campus-guide/map01_02.html
- The University of Tokyo: History of the Hongo Campus
- https://www.u-tokyo.ac.jp/en/whyutokyo/hongo_history.html
Last verified: 2026.09.28
Basic Information
| Name | University of Tokyo Hongo Campus |
|---|---|
| Location | 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo City, Tokyo |
| Owner | The University of Tokyo (national university corporation) |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Properties (7) |
| Coordinates | 35.71330, 139.76073 |
