Site of the Kita-Ote Gate and Wall Reconstruction 北大手櫓門跡と石垣の再建

Official explanation

Kumamoto Castle had three main gates leading into the Nishidemaru northwest sector of the inner compound—one each in the north, south, and west. This was the site of the northern (kita) main gate, which was combined with a turret.

The approach here makes a couple of 90-degree turns. This is a deliberate device of early modern castle layout intended to slow down attackers and allow defenders to fire on them. This feature was known as a masugata (“box shape”), after masu, a wooden box used to measure rice. The gate was removed at some point in the Meiji era (1868–1912), and the walls suffered extensive buckling in the 2016 earthquake. The walls are currently being held in place with nets, sandbags, and mortar to allow access to Kato Shrine.

出典: 地域観光資源の多言語解説文データベース（観光庁） — www.mlit.go.jp/tagengo-db. この英語解説文は観光庁の地域観光資源の多言語解説整備支援事業で作成しました。
Source: Japan Tourism Agency, Multilingual Explanation Database. This English text was produced by the Japan Tourism Agency's multilingual explanation project and is shown unedited. Opening hours and services may have changed since it was written.