Traditional Japanese houses, which define our historical landscape, play a vital role in enhancing a region’s charm and preserving its cultural legacy for future generations. Yet maintaining these treasures is a significant burden, and many towns are witnessing the gradual loss of their cultural streetscapes. Imazushi-cho, nestled in the heart of ancient Nara, is no exception—with many of its traditional houses having already vanished.
This decline is more than just a loss of scenic value; it signals a weakening of the Japanese culture that has long thrived within these spaces. Equally concerning is the dwindling number of people who continue to uphold these cultural traditions.
Today, along with traditional houses, the bearers of traditional culture are becoming rare.
By merging this precious heritage with the expertise of our cultural practitioners, we aim to offer a truly immersive experience and ensure its preservation for the future.
About Nakagawa Residence
The Nakagawa family was a merchant family founded around 1700, producing and selling Nara sarashi, a high-quality linen fabric primarily used in samurai formal attire (kamishimo).
This building originally stood in the fountain plaza in front of Kintetsu Nara Station, but was moved to its current location in Imazushi-cho in 1914 with the construction of Osaka Electric Tramway Nara Station (now Kintetsu Nara Station). A fine example of a traditional townhouse, its overall refined design and high-quality materials and construction have led to it being designated a National Registered Tangible Cultural Property.
The main house faces the street to the east and is a two-story wooden townhouse with a shingled roof. The facade features lattices along with a fog screen. The upper part features deep eaves with beams, a mushiko window, and side walls on both ends. Inside, two rows of rooms line the wide, high-ceilinged dirt floor, with tatami rooms on both the first and second floors. Both rooms are neatly decorated with floors, shelves, overhead and bottom closets, and attached shoin study rooms, and the boundary between the rooms features openwork wooden transoms, giving them the refined feel of the Taisho period.
About Nara Prefecture
Nara Prefecture has held Japan’s ancient capitals, such as Asuka and Heijo Palace, and has fostered a variety of cultures since the founding of the nation.
For example, Nara has a deep connection with Japanese calligraphy culture Shodo. The manufacturing techniques for solid ink Sumi and brushes Fude for Shodo introduced from China took root here, and even today, eight Sumi shops in Nara produce more than 90% of Japan’s Sumi. Furthermore, Nara’s Washi paper, including Yoshino Washi paper, has been passed down for over a thousand years and is highly regarded in the world of art and calligraphy.
Nara has also played an important role in the history of the Japanese tea ceremony. During the Muromachi period (1336-1573), Murata Juko established the spirit of “wabicha” tea, and his ideas were passed down to Sen no Rikyu. Shomyo-ji Temple, a temple associated with Murata Juko, is a 7-minute walk away. Takayama in Nara is also the birthplace of the tea whisks used in the tea ceremony. It is said that during the Muromachi period, the second son of the lord of Takayama Castle, Muneyoshi, was asked by his close friend Murata Juko to make the tea whisks, and even today, more than 90% of Japan’s tea whisks are produced in Takayama.
Nara is also a place that is linked to the development of Japanese flower arranging Ikebana. The culture of offering flowers spread along with Buddhism and eventually became the origin of Japanese flower arranging Ikebana. Memorial services using Ikebana are still held in Nara’s temples, and the traditional aesthetic sense lives on.
Nearby, there is abundant nature, including the Kasuga Primeval Forest, which has been protected for over a thousand years, where you can feel the breath of history. In this area where traditional culture and nature coexist in harmony, we plan to offer authentic cultural experiences rooted in the local region.