Kaigan Building, Registered Cultural Property in Kaigandōri, Japan
The Kaigan Building is a registered tangible cultural property in Kaigandōri, Yokohama, built in a classical style. It has a symmetrical stone facade with evenly spaced windows that give it a calm, orderly presence on the street.
The building was designed by architect Kawai Kozo and completed in 1911, when Yokohama was one of Japan's main trading ports open to foreign commerce. The Kaigandōri district developed around this activity, and many of its buildings from that era share a similar Western-influenced look.
The building's name comes from the Japanese word for 'coastal road', which reflects the waterfront character of the street it faces. Walking past it today, you can still feel the connection between the architecture and its position near the port.
The building stands on Kaigandōri, a street that is easy to walk along from the Yokohama Chinatown area or from Kannai station. It is worth strolling the whole street, as several other historic buildings from the same period are nearby.
Although the building looks Western from the outside, Japanese construction techniques were used during its build, which can be noticed in the detail work of the stone facade. This mix was common in Yokohama during the Meiji era, when local craftsmen interpreted Western plans using their own methods.
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