This is the main gate, built in 1895, during the time of the 29th head of the Shimazu family, Tadayoshi, when Sengan-en served as the family’s main residence.

The gate was constructed from large camphor trees harvested from Mount Iso, just behind the Sengan-en grounds.

Its design follows the dignified yakui-mon style, a formal gate type commonly used for the residences of court nobles and samurai. On either side of the gate are guard stations, where gatekeepers once stood watch.

As you pass through the gate, you’ll see the circle and cross crest, the Shimazu family emblem, carved into the panel at the center above. On either side are carvings of the paulownia crest, also associated with the family.

The cross itself is said to date back to the Shimazu family’s origins. According to tradition, the first head of the family, Shimazu Tadahisa, received the emblem from Minamoto no Yoritomo, founder of the Kamakura shogunate.