Tsukiyone Community Hall

A Village Hall Built by Its Community

The Tsukiyone Community Hall (𣇃米公民館) is a single-storey timber community hall at Tsukiyone, Fujikawa-cho, Minamikoma District, Yamanashi Prefecture, completed in November 1928 and registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property (structure) on May 2, 2017. It was planned as a public hall to commemorate the enthronement of Emperor Showa (Agency for Cultural Affairs, Yamanashi Prefecture).

The Agency for Cultural Affairs records it as single-storey timber with a tiled roof and a building area of 205 square metres; registration number 19-0098, owned by Fujikawa Town. The prefecture's guide writes the place name with a variant character.

Built by the Village

According to Yamanashi Prefecture, the Tsukiyone district lies at the foot of the mountains just west of where the Fuefuki and Kamanashi rivers meet, and the hall stands near its centre. It was designed and built by the local master carpenter Okubo Minekichi; timber and plastering were sourced within the district as far as possible, and the youth association supplied labour.

When sericulture flourished, the Tsukiyone Community Hall also served as a place for inspecting and shipping cocoons, and hosted entertainments and youth association events. It is still used for district events and meetings (Yamanashi Prefecture).

Value as a Registered Cultural Property

The Tsukiyone Community Hall was registered as a structure contributing to the historic landscape of the country. The Agency for Cultural Affairs notes that it is relatively large for a community hall and has long been loved locally, and Yamanashi Prefecture sees in it the efforts and hopes of rural residents during Japan's modernisation.

What to Look For

The Agency for Cultural Affairs notes that it stands on a gentle slope under a hip-and-gable tiled roof, with a gently convex canopy over the south front. A 60-mat assembly room with a stage occupies the south side, and tatami rooms line the north half.

Yamanashi Prefecture points to window canopies running around the building, a bracketed convex canopy over the side door, and original details such as the brackets and cast-iron underfloor vents. An old ridge-end tile bearing the character for "public" is kept, and storage and toilets were added on the north-west in 2001.

Visiting

The Tsukiyone Community Hall is a working district hall at 1237 Tsukiyone, Fujikawa-cho. No interior opening information has been confirmed, so view it from outside and take care not to disturb its users.