A shaft sealing mechanism that, by being disposed in an annular space formed between a fixed part and a rotating shaft, partitions the annular space into a high-pressure-side region and a low-pressure-side region to prevent fluid from flowing from the high-pressure-side region toward the low-pressure-side region in the annular space in a direction of the rotating shaft, wherein the shaft sealing mechanism comprises: an annular seal housing disposed at an inner circumferential portion of the fixed part; a plurality of thin-plate seal pieces stacked and disposed annularly in a circumferential direction of the rotating shaft, each of which has an outer-circumferential-side proximal end fixed to the seal housing, an inner-circumferential-side distal end being a free end and forming an acute angle with an outer circumferential surface of the rotating shaft, and a width dimension in the direction of the rotating shaft; and an annular low-pressure-side plate held between the seal housing and low-pressure-side side edges of the thin-plate seal pieces facing the low-pressure-side region so as to form a gap between the low-pressure-side side edges and the seal housing in the direction of the rotating shaft, characterized in that a first plurality of the thin-plate seal pieces has exactly two pressure conduction holes which are formed inward of an inner-circumferential-side distal end of the low-pressure-side plate in a radial direction of the rotating shaft and alongside the low-pressure-side side edge in the radial direction of the rotating shaft, and which allow the fluid flowing on an upper surface side of the thin-plate seal piece and the fluid flowing on a lower surface side of the thin-plate seal piece to pass therethrough, wherein the two pressure conduction holes are through holes passing through an upper surface and a lower surface in the first plurality of the thin-plate seal piece, the lower surface facing the rotating shaft, the upper surface being opposed to the lower surface, hole positions of the two pressure conduction holes are the same among all the first plurality of the thin-plate seal pieces, and in the circumferential direction of the rotating shaft, a second plurality of the thin-plate seal pieces not having pressure conduction holes is provided intermittently, each at every other position, or at every third or larger number position, in the first plurality of the thin-plate seal pieces arranged annularly. an annular seal housing disposed at an inner circumferential portion of the fixed part; a plurality of thin-plate seal pieces stacked and disposed annularly in a circumferential direction of the rotating shaft, each of which has an outer-circumferential-side proximal end fixed to the seal housing, an inner-circumferential-side distal end being a free end and forming an acute angle with an outer circumferential surface of the rotating shaft, and a width dimension in the direction of the rotating shaft; and an annular low-pressure-side plate held between the seal housing and low-pressure-side side edges of the thin-plate seal pieces facing the low-pressure-side region so as to form a gap between the low-pressure-side side edges and the seal housing in the direction of the rotating shaft, characterized in that a first plurality of the thin-plate seal pieces has exactly two pressure conduction holes which are formed inward of an inner-circumferential-side distal end of the low-pressure-side plate in a radial direction of the rotating shaft and alongside the low-pressure-side side edge in the radial direction of the rotating shaft, and which allow the fluid flowing on an upper surface side of the thin-plate seal piece and the fluid flowing on a lower surface side of the thin-plate seal piece to pass therethrough, wherein the two pressure conduction holes are through holes passing through an upper surface and a lower surface in the first plurality of the thin-plate seal piece, the lower surface facing the rotating shaft, the upper surface being opposed to the lower surface, hole positions of the two pressure conduction holes are the same among all the first plurality of the thin-plate seal pieces, and in the circumferential direction of the rotating shaft, a second plurality of the thin-plate seal pieces not having pressure conduction holes is provided intermittently, each at every other position, or at every third or larger number position, in the first plurality of the thin-plate seal pieces arranged annularly.