Japanese Court and Open Air Architectural Museum (Rekishi-no-sato)
Erected in the Meiji era (1868-1912) as the Matsumoto Branch Court of Nagano District Court.
This is the only wooden court building remaining in Japan. Exhibits include;
- information and displays of trials in three different periods: the period before the Meiji Restoration of 1867, the period under the Meiji Constitution from 1889 to 1947, and the period that followed.
- Equipment used by Police etc. That includes many of the famed Ninja Stars for you Martial arts fanatics.
In the outdoor exhibit area behind the courthouse, you can see;
- The house where advocator of democratic rights, Naoe Kinoshita (1869-1937), was born
- A prison block of an older era.
- An old hut in which poor Silk factory girls once lived and Silk factory equiptment.
The Museum is located beside the Ukiyo-e (woodblock print) Museum. So see them both at once.
the Law as Delivered in Older Times
| Access | A 7-minute drive from JR Matsumoto train station A 15-minute walk from Matsumoto Railway Kamikochi line Ohniwa station (Japanese Map) |
|---|---|
| Hours | 9am - 5pm (doors close 4:30pm) |
| Closed | Mondays (but open on National Holiday-Mondays, closed next day instead), Dec 29 to Jan 3rd |
| Admission | Y400 for adults, Y300 for parties of over 20, free for ES/JHS students |
| Tel | 0263-47-4515 |
Recommendation; If you find this museum interesting and are travelling in the region, you Must visit the Takayama Jinya (District Administrative Office)! It is a really well preserved large and original site with buildings and warehouses dating back 100's of years along with that equipment necessary to extract the correct answers from un-cooperative felons.