Torii of Motojiro Akashi, Historic gate in Kangle Village, Taiwan.
The Torii of Motojiro Akashi is a concrete torii 4 metres long and 6 metres high, standing in Lin-Sen Park in Taipei's Zhongshan District. It originally faced the site of today's Regent Hotel. The inscription once on its facade has disappeared.
Motojiro Akashi died on 24 October 1919; his body reached Keelung on 1 November and, according to his grandson Akashi Mototsugu, was buried in the Sanqiao-chō cemetery on 3 November. Because the governor was regarded as a military god, a concrete torii 4 m long and 6 m high was erected before the grave, facing the site of today's Regent Hotel. After 1949, soldiers of the 50th Army built a military dependents' village over the cemetery and used the torii for hanging laundry.
The gate shows Japanese design traditions from Taiwan's colonial period, using the style typically found at entries to Shinto shrines. These forms were common in religious structures built during that era.
The monument is located in Kangle Village and can be viewed without special arrangements. The area is easily accessible and nearby historical sites are within walking distance for further exploration.
The torii stood behind Kangle Market, hidden beside No. 17, Alley 36, Lane 167 of Linsen North Road, with the San-I sect Shansing Hall next to it; the inscription on its face had disappeared. In 2004, Katakura Yoshifumi's book on Japanese colonial-era heritage described it, but Japanese tourists who came looking found nothing, which drew media and councillor attention. In 2010 it was moved back, about 15 metres south of its original spot.
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