Sotome Museum of History and Folklore

This small museum opened in 1982 to document the Sotome region's layered past. Three subjects share the space: the traditional fishing and farming life of the coast, including innovations introduced by Father Marc de Rotz, the French priest who led the local parish in the late 19th and early 20th centuries; the area's Hidden Christian community, whose descendants have donated rosaries, prayer manuscripts, and handmade calendars used to observe their faith in secret; and the nearby Ikeshima coal mine, which closed in 2001 as Japan's last operating mine. A small section covers Jomon and Yayoi period archaeological sites from the surrounding area.