A 320-year-old home, the Japanese Heritage Shōya House, debuts at The Huntington

A multi-year project involving a home can often mean choices about room additions, backyard work, kitchen renovations, or adding new flooring.

But for one special home, a centuries-old structure that is now on view at The Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens, the conversation involved how to move it, with much care and consideration, thousands of miles across a vast ocean.

For the Japanese Heritage Shōya House, which is now located on a two-acre compound at the San Marino destination, was first constructed in Marugame, Japan "around 1700," making any prospect of moving it a major, and majorly complex, undertaking.

"Los Angeles residents Yohko and Akira Yokoi offered their historic family home to The Huntington in 2016," shared The Huntington, and soon after representatives from the local landmark were making "numerous visits" to Japan, all to map out how to safely transport the 320-year-old structure.

"Since 2019, artisans from Japan have been working alongside local architects, engineers, and construction workers to assemble the structures and re-create the traditional wood and stonework features, as well as the roof tiles and plaster work, prioritizing the traditions of Japanese carpentry, artisanship, and sensitivity to materials," revealed The Huntington.

The historical treasure made its Southern California debut on Oct. 21, 2023. Included with Huntington admission, a visit to the Japanese Heritage Shōya House will give guests the opportunity to stroll the compound, which includes a garden and a pond, as well as a portion of the home.

A look inside will give visitors the opportunity to see "... how inhabitants lived their daily lives within the thoughtfully designed and meticulously crafted 320-year-old structure."

Find out more now by visiting The Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens.