The Gate That Fronts the Station
The Former Sericultural Experiment Station Shinjo Branch (Front Gate and Fence) is a concrete gate and fence of 1934 in Tokamachi, Shinjo City, Yamagata Prefecture, entered on the national register as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on 29 March 2013.
It opens in front of the main office to the south. The total width is 7.4 metres. The piers are square concrete posts, their shafts faced in scratch tile with the base and the cap finished in plain mortar. A pair of iron leaves hangs in the central bay and a single leaf in each of the side bays.
Low fences splay outward from both piers. Concrete posts carry two rows of steel pipe, and a clipped planting runs along the front. The fence measures 30 metres in total length.
Of the ten registrations at this station, only this one is classed as a work of engineering rather than a building. It is counted as one unit, ki in Japanese, where the other nine are counted as buildings.
Why It Was Registered
The registration number is 06-0144, the last of the ten issued on the same day, under the first criterion, which covers structures contributing to the historic character of the landscape.
Gates rarely earn a registration on their own. This one did because it is the nearest element in the composition formed by the main office and the two buildings flanking it. Remove the gate and the view into the Former Sericultural Experiment Station Shinjo Branch from the south loses the frame that holds it together.
The choice of material dates the gate as clearly as the tile does. Public institutions of the 1930s often built in timber but used concrete for the gate and the boundary, putting the durable material where the wear was. Scratch tile was the standard way of giving that concrete a face worth looking at.
What to Look For
Get close to the tile on the piers. Fine vertical grooves run down each piece, combed into the clay before firing. When the light comes in at a low angle the grooves throw shadows and the surface reads as rough; around midday it flattens out almost completely. No other part of the site changes so much with the hour.
The piers are built in three bands. Plain mortar at the base, plain mortar at the cap, tile only on the shaft between them. Closing the top and bottom in a blank finish makes the tile read as a horizontal band rather than as cladding.
Because the fences splay outward, standing in the gateway opens the view to both sides. The fence is only waist high and consists of nothing but concrete posts and two rows of pipe, so it marks the boundary without hiding anything behind it.
Note how the leaves are hung: double in the centre, single at each side. Vehicles need the wide central opening, and people passing on foot need no more than the side leaf.
Visiting This Structure
The Front Gate and Fence stands outdoors and serves as the entrance to the grounds, so it can be seen at any hour and there is no charge.
The gate is still in daily use. Vehicles pass through it, so if you stop in front of it to take a photograph, choose a spot clear of the traffic.
There are no photography restrictions. From the south the frame takes in the piers, the iron leaves and the office building beyond. Move to an oblique angle and the grooved tile and the pipe rails of the side fence fall into the same shot.
In winter, snow buries the foot of each pier and the mortar base disappears. If you want to see the three-band composition of the piers, come in a snow-free season.
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- Find tours, activities & transport passes near Former Sericultural Experiment Station Shinjo Branch (Front Gate and Fence)
- [ Yamadera Temple & Zao Onsen Hot Springs ]
Q&A
- Can the Front Gate and Fence of the Former Sericultural Experiment Station Shinjo Branch be seen freely?
- Yes. It stands outdoors as the entrance to the grounds, is visible at any hour and costs nothing to see. Vehicles use the gate, so stand clear of the opening when photographing it.
- How wide is the front gate?
- The total width is 7.4 metres, with double iron leaves in the central bay and a single leaf in each side bay. Low fences splay from both piers for a combined length of 30 metres.
- What is the Front Gate and Fence made of?
- Both are concrete. The square piers have shafts faced in scratch tile with mortar at the base and cap, and the side fences are concrete posts pierced by two rows of steel pipe.
- When was the Front Gate and Fence built?
- In 1934, the year the station opened as a sub-office of the Fukushima branch, and the same year as the main office building.
- Why is this registration counted differently from the others?
- It is registered as a work of engineering rather than a building, the only one of the ten at the station in that class. The other nine are counted as buildings.
Basic Information
| Name | Former Sericultural Experiment Station Shinjo Branch (Front Gate and Fence) |
|---|---|
| Location | 6000-1 Toumeki, Tokamachi, Shinjo City, Yamagata Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (structure) |
| Year Designated | Registered 29 March 2013 |
| Quantity | 1 unit |
| Dimensions | Gate: concrete, 7.4 metres wide / Fence: concrete, 30 metres in total length |
| Owner | Shinjo City |
| Public Access | Outdoors, visible at any time, free of charge |
References
- Agency for Cultural Affairs, National Cultural Properties Database: Front Gate and Fence
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00009424
- Shinjo City: On the Registered Tangible Cultural Properties
- https://www.city.shinjo.yamagata.jp/k001/020/010/030/030/9635.html
- Shinjo City: Shinjo City Ecology Garden, Gensan-no-Mori
- https://www.city.shinjo.yamagata.jp/g/kanko/020/010/010/
- Michi-no-Eki Shinjo Ecology Garden Gensan-no-Mori: Facility Guide
- https://michinoeki-eg.jp/facility/
Last verified: 2026.09.14
