ABSTRACT This paper examines the renovation of the Naiku Sanshuden (1969) in Ise Jingu, addressing how public architecture within sacred precincts can be renewed while preserving sanctity. The project redefined publicness by transforming a massive postwar reinforced‐concrete ( RC) structure into an open, timber‐integrated space that harmonizes with worship flows and the surrounding landscape. Structurally, the design “unraveled” the monolithic RC frame through layered boundaries and spatial depth, softening its rigidity while maintaining integrity. Rhetorically, the project reinterpreted the Shinmei‐zukuri—characteristic of Ise Jingu—to reconstruct architectural expression rooted in historical and regional identity. These three perspectives—programmatic, structural, and rhetorical—demonstrate a universal approach for renewing modern shrine facilities across Japan, offering a design methodology that reconciles modern construction with sacred continuity, environmental sensitivity, and historical symbolism within the evolving context of Shinto architecture.
Shinnosuke Tsuchiya (Thu,) studied this question.