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The entrance hall, drawing
room and master's living room of this 260-year-old house, built during the
Edo period, have been preserved in close-to-original condition. The front
section of the house, consisting mainly of guest rooms, is constructed with
cedar posts and straight-grain planks. While cedar is also used in the back
section of the house, the planks are rougher, made from cedar bark. This
difference evidences the high degree of class-consciousness of and strong
distinctions made between private and public by members of the Samurai class
in their daily lives. Exhibited items include a himekago (palanquin for
the exclusive use of high-class ladies), a katanatansu (chest for storing
swords), a noshime no kimono (semi-formal men's kimono), tools for blackening
teeth (before and during the Edo period, it was customary for married women
to dye their teeth black), and a kuruma nagamochi (oblong chest mounted
on wheels). Next door to the Samurai House is a traditional Japanese restaurant. |
