Iwase Family Residence

The Iwase Residence has stood unchanged in a beautiful mountain village setting for 300 years. Built as a 5-floor Gassho-style structure 300 years ago, it apparently had 35 family members living in it together until the Meiji Period and is now the largest surviving Gassho-style house in Japan. You can sit around a hearth listening to a talk about Gassho-style or do a tour of the attic.

Gassho-style houses are a traditional Japanese architectural style, primarily found in the Shirakawa-go and Gokayama areas, characterized by their steep, thatched, triangular roofs that resemble hands joined in prayer. This unique design helps to shed heavy snow, a common feature of the region, and the large internal attic space was historically used for industries like silk farming. These structures are built without nails, relying instead on ropes and natural bindings, creating flexible and earthquake-resistant buildings.Read more