The scent of suspense wafted through the air as shadows appeared in the bathroom window

Bathroom of the former Asakamiya Residence

The Tokyo Metropolitan Teien Art Museum was the residence where Prince Yasuhiko Asaka lived until he left the imperial family in 1947. As such, it not only has spaces for entertaining guests, such as the main hall, the next room, the small guest room, the large guest room, and the large dining room, but also private spaces such as the study, living room, and bedroom. And of course, there is a bathroom. The photo shows the bathroom.

The former Asakamiya residence and the former Iwasaki residence were built in very different conditions when they were built, even though they are collectively called "Western-style buildings built before the war". The major difference is the lifestyle of the people who lived there. While the people of the Iwasaki family lived in a Western-style house for entertaining guests, their private space was in a Japanese style house built next to the Western-style house. There was no Japanese style living space in the Asakamiya residence, and the Asakamiya people spent both their public and private spaces in the Western style. The former Iwasaki residence was built in 1896 and the former Asakamiya residence in 1933, almost 40 years apart, and it seems that over the past 40 years, it has become normal for the upper class to live their daily lives in the Western style.

As I was looking at the retro bathtub in the bathroom with the sun shining through the window, I suddenly saw shadows outside the window. The scene looked like a scene from a suspense movie. I felt as if the sunshine and the sweltering air had entered the peaceful bathroom.

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