I think that Jiro Shirasu is an outstanding person who would certainly be a strong candidate for the “Ten Great Persons of the Showa Era” among those who love Japanese modern and contemporary history. However, I don’t think he is well known among the general public. I doubt if he even appears in Japanese history textbooks.
In fact, it was only in recent years that I came to know a lot about him. He was the son of a wealthy merchant in Kobe, he built friendships with the Western elite when he studied in England, he was at the forefront of negotiations with GHQ during World War II with his exceptional talent and fluent English, he was expected to enter politics, but he remained a private citizen and was involved in the management of several major companies (I learned that he served as chairman of Tohoku Electric Power Co. during a trip along the Tadami Line).
I was intrigued by the house in Machida, Tokyo, where he moved when he was 41 years old and lived there for the rest of his life.
It is said that his decision to set up Tsurukawa Village (as it was then) away from the city of Tokyo was due to the British elite’s belief that a gentleman should keep himself away from the political strife in the center of the city.
The site of Jiro’s house in the mountain village, which Jiro fashionably called “Buaiso”(double meaning in Japanese ’unfriendly’ and ‘boader house between Bu and Ai region’), is now in the middle of a residential area in Machida City, one of Tokyo’s most popular bedroom communities. It is open to the public as a museum and archive that can be visited on foot in about 15 minutes from the nearest railway station.
From the parking lot side, you enter the site through a small path in the bamboo grove.
It is well known that Jiro himself was a stylish man with an English background, and his wife Shirasu Masako was also a prominent figure. She is a daughter of the Marquis Kabayama of Satsuma, a famous writer and antique collector, and is one of the original cultural figures of high taste that women’s magazines rarely fail to feature in their articles. It is not at all a country house for a retired life, but rather a residence where the owners enjoyed suburban life in style, with tasteful decorations here and there in the grounds.
Of course, there is no guarantee that these were installed in Jiro and Masako’s time, but if this is the house in which they lived, it is not surprising.
And this is the main house of the mansion.
And a full view of the thatched main house from the porch direction. This year there was no “in between” summer and fall, and it feels like the season has suddenly deepened in just a few days.
The main house has been preserved almost exactly as it was in the house and is now a “museum”. There is a fee, and unfortunately photography is not allowed, so I cannot show it here, but I would highly recommend anyone interested in Mr. and Mrs. Shirasu to visit.
The autumn sunlight shining on the porch through the surrounding trees is beautiful.
The grounds of the mansion have a small, but quite charming, circular walking path.
Now the grounds of the mansion are dotted with several other buildings besides the main house, which is now a museum. There are a few more photo ops in that area, which I will show you next time.
*Yes, did you notice that the aspect ratio of the photo is 3:2 for the first time in a while? The pain in my shoulder has been getting better, so I decided to try out the SIGMA 17-70mm on my PENTAX K-3III, which I have not used for a long time.
Fortunately, the pain in my shoulder did not bother me this time, so I would like to gradually increase the opportunities to take it out with other lenses in the future.
