Katsura : Imperial Villa

Beautifully illustrated with newly commissioned photographs as well as archival material, this volume on the Imperial Palace of Katsura provides a complete history of one of the most beloved architectural works of the 17th century that is a continued source of fascination to architects today.

Prince Toshihito, the founder of Katsura, was born in 1579.

The Prince was never fascinated by ostentatious wealth.

From an early age he showed great interest in literature and so set about constructing a villa modeled on the pond gardens of the Tale of Genji.

The limited resources of the Prince compelled him to exercise restraint and fiscal discipline.

Accordingly, the first Katsura Villa seems to have been little more than "a teahouse in the melon patch," as most of the area had given over to melon fields.

The Prince died in 1629, when his son Toshitada was only ten years old.

Consequently the boy made little use of the villa, and by 1631 it was already noted that it was deteriorating.

But the young Prince shared the same interest in literature as his late father, and by 1641 had visited the dilapidated villa. When he married, his income grew much greater than what he inherited from his father.

Accordingly, he gained the financial means to thoroughly renovate the villa, which he proceeded to do after 1642.

Toshitada was an enthusiastic practitioner of the tea ceremony, which encourages an attitude of rustic simplicity.

He desired to renovate Katsura into an ideal place to serve tea, and to this end built several additional teahouses on the grounds.

After Toshitada's renovations the fame of the villa grew.

Prince Toshitada himself died in 1662, and his heir perished just three years later.

Over the years future additions were impossible because both the fourth and fifth generation princes died in their teens.

The sixth generation prince died in his thirties, but the seventh generation, Prince Yakahito, lived from 1703 to 1767.

During his relatively long life he made frequent visits to the villa and made numerous repairs, although leaving the general layout intact.

The villa passed out of Hachijo hands in 1883, when the family became extinct.

The vacant palace reverted to the Emperor, but suffered damage during the turmoil of the Meiji Restoration.

Fortunately, there has never been a fire. In 1983 a comprehensive restoration was made, involving the dismantling of virtually the entire building, replacing rotten wood and repairing the sagging floor before reassembly.

Thanks to this treatment, the palace of today is weathered but sturdy, retaining most of its original wood.