Motodoriyamako Castle
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History
Motodoriyamakojō was a satellite fortification of Motodoriyamajō, thus its diminutive name. See Motodoriyama Castle for more information.
Visit Notes
Modoriyamakojō is a yamajiro (mountaintop castle) and satellite fortification of the larger Modoriyamajō. The two sites, known collectively as Modoriyamajō, straddle the municipal border between Nagano Municipality and Iiźuna Township. Modoriyamakojō features earthworks such as tatebori (climbing trenches), dorui (earthen ramparts), and kuruwa (baileys), as well as residual masonry.
Modoriyamakojō is a single bailey fort complex with a main bailey on the hilltop orbited by small ledge-like terraced areas in bands on the hill side. Some embankments and tatebori can be found on the hillside, but they are hard to make out as the ruins are deformed and overgrown. I was most impressed by the remains of ishigaki / ishiźumi (stone-piled walls) which seem to cover the hilltop. Particularly, there are corner segments or what look to be crude nobori-ishigaki (climbing stone walls) at the eastern corners of the main bailey. There's no mistaking these two lines of stone piles which stretch from the main bailey down to a terraced sub-bailey below. It's quite a mysterious structure.
I was following Ranmaru-sensei's map as a guide; on his blog he mentions the residual masonry at the site, depicting some stone wall ruins around the top of the bailey ramparts, but does not mention the climbing sections on the scarp. Everything is so jumbled and overgrown that it's hard to get a clear picture of the ruins, but I was most engaged by these shambolic clumps of masonry.
| Castle Profile | |
|---|---|
| English Name | Motodoriyamako Castle |
| Japanese Name | 髻山小城 |
| Founder | Uesugi Kenshin |
| Year Founded | 1547 |
| Castle Type | Mountaintop |
| Castle Condition | Ruins only |
| Historical Period | Pre Edo Period |
| Artifacts | Tatebori, Kuruwa, Ishizumi, &c. |
| Features | trenches, stone walls |
| Visitor Information | |
| Access | Nearest stations are Toyono Station and Mure Station on the Kita-Shinano Line |
| Visitor Information | 24/7 free; mountain |
| Time Required | 30 minutes |
| Location | Nagano, Nagano Prefecture |
| Coordinates | 36° 43' 3.61" N, 138° 14' 45.46" E |
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| Admin | |
| Added to Jcastle | 2023 |
| Contributor | ART |
| Admin Year Visited | Viewer Contributed |
| Friends of JCastle | |
| Ranmaru | |
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