Main Gate 正門

Official explanation

During the time of the Ryukyu Kingdom, the tile-roofed main gate, or Sei-mon, of Shikinaen was for the exclusive use of royal family members, and for leading Chinese delegates to ceremonies. The gate is in a style called yajo, reserved for the homes of families of high status. It has a finely crafted, robust structure of inumaki wood, with four supporting posts, integrated into a wall of carefully worked Ryukyuan limestone. The roof is red Ryukyuan tile with white plaster decoration. It is believed that footmen ran ahead of the palanquins carrying royal visitors and shouted out orders to open the gate so visitors could be received with appropriate dignity.

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.