Akaogi Castle Cultural Museum Gessoutei
Akaogi Castle Cultural Museum Gessoutei, Tanegashima 種子島赤尾木城文化伝承館
Akaogi Castle Cultural Museum Gessoutei, Tanegashima, Kagoshima Prefecture
The Akaogi Castle Cultural Museum Gessoutei in Tanegashima off the southern coast of Kagoshima Prefecture is a former samurai residence.
The house was constructed in 1795 by Michikiyo Habu (1768-1845) and was the home of his grandson Michinori Habu, who was a practitioner of the tea ceremony and flower arrangement (kado). The residence was inhabited until 2000 when ownership of the house and garden was transferred to Nishinoomote city.
Akaogi Castle Cultural Museum Gessoutei, Tanegashima, Kagoshima Prefecture
Temple grounds near Akaogi Castle Cultural Museum Gessoutei, Tanegashima, Kagoshima Prefecture
Exhibits
Gessoutei is worth visiting for its distinctive samurai garden combining tropical vegetation and coral stones and the peaceful upper storey with tatami floor overlooking the garden.
For an extra 200 yen you can also be given a simple lesson in Japanese archery and fire five arrows at a target. (I missed with all five!)
Gessoutei also displays a life-sized doll dating from the Edo Period. The clothes of the doll are changed twice a year by the women of the house. Local tradition forbids males to touch it.
The museum also has further exhibits of samurai armor, Tanegashima's signature matchlocks, calligraphy, clothing and handicrafts.
Temple close to Akaogi Castle Cultural Museum Gessoutei, Tanegashima
Akaogi Castle Cultural Museum Gessoutei, Tanegashima
Access
Akaogi Castle Cultural Museum Gessoutei
7528 Nishinoomote, Nishinoomote-shi
Kagoshima Prefecture 891 3101
Tel: 0997 22 2101
Hours: 9 am - 5 pm; closed on the 25th of every month (open daily in July and August).
Admission: Adults 200 yen (550 yen with entry to the Gessoutei samurai house), high school students 150 yen, junior high and elementary school students 100 yen.
The museum is a 150 minute walk from the port where the ferries to and from Kagoshima and Yakushima arrive and depart. Within easy walking distance of the museum is the Pistol Museum (a combined ticket allows reduced admission to both museums) and the Statue of Tanegashima Tokitaka (1528 - 1579), the young feudal lord only 15 years old when he first made contact with the Europeans.
The Tanegashima Space Center is another excellent museum on the island, located on the south east coast.
Akaogi Castle Cultural Museum Gessoutei, Tanegashima
Akaogi Castle Cultural Museum Gessoutei, Tanegashima, Kagoshima Prefecture
Accommodation in Tanegashima
There is a range of available accommodation on Tanegashima from budget minshuku guest-houses to higher-end western style hotels. In Nishinoomote try the recommended Inomoto Honkan Inn (Tel: 0997 22 1100) which has several associated restaurants, the more upmarket Hotel Lexton Tanegashima, the budget Ryokan Miharusou or the three star Tanegashima Araki Hotel.
Elsewhere on Tanegashima are Zeus House, a guest house on the east coast, Minshuku Seiryukyo and the two star guest house Ebinoyu in Minamitane.
Akaogi Castle Cultural Museum Gessoutei, Tanegashima, Kagoshima Prefecture
Statue of Tanegashima Tokitaka (1528 - 1579), Tanegashima, Kagoshima Prefecture
Map
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Akaogi Castle Cultural Museum Gessoutei is a former samurai residence in Tanegashima, Kagoshima Prefecture complete with a lovely garden.
