Message to all visitors

The main building was constructed in 1891 as the Sasayama District Court and was in use until 1981. It is the oldest wooden courthouse in Japan. In order to preserve it as an important building for the future, the exterior and old courtrooms have been left in their original form, while the interior has been remodeled to make it suitable for an art museum.

The Sasayama region has been inhabited since the Jomon period, dating back thousands of years. Through the Yayoi period and into the Kofun period, the existence of a powerful group that boasted direct ties to the central government is made clear by the existence of the Kurumazuka keyhole-shaped tomb, a reference site for imperial tombs by the Imperial Household Agency. Since then, it has always played a central role in the Tamba region, through ancient and medieval periods.

In the early modern period, Sasayama Castle, built by order of Tokugawa Ieyasu in 1609, was at its center, and the town around it, as well as the entire Taki district, formed a self-contained region, and it flourished as the "Capital of Tamba" as the name suggests.

The Sasayama region, with its historical climate, is blessed with abundant nature and the cultural heritage that has been cultivated through the wonderful lives of its people is still preserved and passed down to the present day.

The main building has gathered and exhibited masterpieces from Ojiyama-yaki, one of Japan's leading porcelain kilns, which opened as the Sasayama domain kilns at the end of the Edo period, as well as art pieces such as weapons, lacquerware, paintings on folding screens, and other art that have been handed down in the castle town, as well as buried cultural assets that say the story of this region since ancient times. We hope you will come and enjoy the exhibits.

Tambasasayama Historical Art Museum