- Culture
- Oita
Oka Castle Ruins
Oka Castle Ruins, a mountain castle that inspires famous folk song “Kojo-no-Tsuki” (The Moon over the Ruined Castle)
The stone castle stands above an altitude of 325m above sea level. In 1954, the lord Hideyoshi Toyotomi handed over the castle to his trusted follower Hideshige Nakagawa and ordered to rebuild the castle into a veritable stone castle.
An admission fee is currently charged for stone wall maintenance and environment improvement. From the parking lot, climb the steep castle road of the Ohtemon or the Kondomon, to the Honmaru (main bailey), Ni-no-maru (the second bailey), and San-no-maru (the third bailey), then passing through the government office’s ruins. The course will take 30 minutes in total (the shortest course). From Honmaru, you can enjoy a panoramic view of the Kuju mountain ranges and from Kondomon, you can see Mount Aso and the castle town.
In the Ni-no-maru, there is a statue of Rentaro Taki (by Fumio Asakura), a composer of "Kojo-no-Tsuki" (The Moon over the Ruined Castle) that was included in the songbook for high school students. It is said that Oka Castle became a model for the song of "Kojo-no-Tsuki”.
Why do not you go to visit Rentaro Taki Memorial Museum too?
The museum is located in the house of Rentaro Taki, a composer of "Kojo-no-Tsuki", when he lived from the age of 12 to 14. Inside the memorial hall, there were letters, photographs, and handwritten notations. In addition, 15 minutes video introduces Rentaro's life is worth to watching!
Perhaps it is the only place in Japan that retains the atmosphere that nurtured Rentaro’s sensibility.
Location
| Name | Oka Castle Ruins |
|---|---|
| Web Sites | (In Japanese) https://www.city.taketa.oita.jp/okajou/ (In Japanese) https://www.taketan.jp/spots/detail/116 |
| Address | 2889 Taketa, Taketa-shi, Oita |
| Access | 5 minutes' drive from Bungo Taketa Station |
| Business Hours | 9:00 to 17:00 |
| Inquiries | TEL: 0974-63-1541 (Oka Castle Ticket Office) |
| Admission | High school students and above: 300 yen (200 yen); Elementary and junior high school students: 150 yen (100 yen) *1 *1 Rates in brackets are group rates for 20 people or more |
| Name | Rentaro Taki Memorial Museum |
|---|---|
| Web Sites | (In Japanese) https://www.taketan.jp/spots/detail/38 |
| Address | 2120-1 Taketa, Taketa-shi, Oita |
| Access | 10 minutes' walk from Bungo Taketa Station |
| Business Hours | 9:00 to 17:00 (Last admission: 16:30) |
| Inquiries | TEL: 0974-63-0559 |
| Admission | High school students and above: 300 yen (250 yen); Elementary and junior high school students: 200 yen (150 yen) *1 *1 Rates in brackets are group rates for 20 people or more |