Toki no Kane (Time Bell Tower)

The Kawagoe Kurazukuri Museum was built by Koyama Bunzō, a tobacco wholesaler, right after the great fire in 1893 with reference to the few houses of Kurazukuri and Tokyo’s Nihonbashi Merchant that were not exposed to the fire. The design, structure, and the inside of the Kurazukuri House of Kawagoe can be toured, and a breath of Meiji’s atmosphere can be felt to this day.

A townscape of “kura warehouses” still remains in Kawagoe. The kura warehouses were cleverly built with fireproof architecture and developed as housing for the merchants of Edo. The warehouses retain an image of Edo that cannot be seen in modern day Tokyo. They were chosen as national “Important Preservation Districts for Groups of Traditional Buildings” in December of 1999 and were selected as one of “Japan’s 100 Beautiful Historical Environments” in January of 2007.

The two genuine Dashis (festival cars) that has been pulled at the Kawagoe Festival is on display along with materials related to the Kawagoe Festival. The powerful atmosphere of the Kawagoe Festival can be physically felt all year round. In addition, there is a demonstration of musical accompaniment (about 20 minutes) on a regular basis at the exhibition hall.

Many small, old-time candy stores line the Kashiya Yokochō (confectionery alley). 70 houses existed in the beginning of the Shōwa era, where they produced a variety of sweets to be sold wholesale. As of now, there are about 20 houses left that still produce and sell cheap sweets, such as mint candy and the Kintaro candy, which are nostalgic for both adults and children alike. Kashiya Yokocho was also selected as one of “The 100 Best Scented Sceneries” by the Ministry of the Environment.

Old Yamazaki Family Villa was built as a retreat for Kashichi Yamazaki, the 5th generation of Kameya, a long-established confectionery store of Kawagoe. In 2000, the main house, tearoom, and the benches of the waiting room were designated as a tangible cultural property of the city and in 2006, a portion of the building was donated to the city. In February of 2011, the garden was registered as the national registered monument (location of scenic beauty). In addition, on September 30th of 2019, the purlin was designated as the nation’s important cultural property (edifice). (Tearoom and the benches of the waiting room were also designated). In the garden of the Old Yamazaki Family Villa, there are architectures of a Japanese-style house and a Western-style house along with an example of a Japanese-style garden with a tearoom designed by Katsuya Yasuoka and is recognized of value with a high evaluation for its “contribution to the development for the culture of landscape architecture”.