Workrooms built as one piece with the gate
The Kamiya Family Residence Plastering Room and Charcoal Room (神谷家住宅左官部屋及び炭部屋, Kamiya-ke Jūtaku Sakan-beya oyobi Sumi-beya) is a single-storey timber building of around 1905 in Izumicho, Anjo City, Aichi Prefecture, registered as a National Registered Tangible Cultural Property on 18 April 2008. It covers 32 square metres under a gabled tiled roof and stands on the southern boundary of the compound, continuous with the main gate.
The two are distinguished by ridge height. This building sits one step above the gate, while on the courtyard side its eaves are brought into line with the eaves of the gate. Difference on the outside, alignment on the inside: two adjustments working in opposite directions.
The walls are clad in black-painted boarding with vertical battens, and the panel above is of exposed-post construction finished in plaster. The Kamiya Family Residence Plastering Room and Charcoal Room carries registration number 23-0291.
The buildings that kept the estate running
The registration criterion is contribution to the historic landscape of Japan. As the name says, this was the workshop of the plasterer. An estate with four mud-walled storehouses needs constant attention to its plaster and earth surfaces, and giving that work a dedicated room means it was routine rather than occasional.
The charcoal room is of the same order: fuel for heating and cooking, stored where it would stay dry. The Kamiya Family Residence Plastering Room and Charcoal Room is not display architecture in the way the reception rooms and treasure store are. It is part of the machinery that kept an estate of this size in working condition.
None of which meant the exterior could be neglected. Standing on the southern boundary facing the road, it is part of the public face of the household.
What to look for
Watch the ridge line. Raising this roof one step above the gate creates a break in a long, otherwise continuous run of roof along the southern side, and that break gives the elevation its rhythm.
The wall is composed in two registers: black boarding below, plastered panel with visible posts above. Dark board against white plaster, verticals against horizontals. There is a certain logic in the house of a resident plasterer having carefully finished walls.
West of the Kamiya Family Residence Plastering Room and Charcoal Room the connecting passage takes over, and beyond that the rice storehouse. From the gate onward the southern side runs without a gap, designed as a single continuous wall plane.
Visiting and access
The interior is part of a private home and is closed. Because the building stands on the southern boundary facing the road, however, its black boarding and the step in the roofline can be seen from the public street. Photograph from the road rather than through the gate. The City of Anjo asks visitors to remember that most historic buildings in the city are privately owned.
From Anjo or Mikawa-Anjo Station on the JR Tokaido Line, take the city Ankuru bus on the Nanbu line to Kaminokiri or Izumi Jozanen. Buses run infrequently, so check the timetable first. About seven minutes' walk south is Jozanen, a garden and study hall built by the city on the birthplace of the early Edo poet Ishikawa Jozan. Open 9:00 to 17:00, last entry 16:30, closed Mondays with the following day substituted for a national holiday, and over the new year.
- 📍 Plan Your Visit to Aichi
- Find tours, activities & transport passes near Kamiya Family Residence Plastering Room and Charcoal Room
- [ Nagoya Castle & Atsuta Shrine History Tours ]
Q&A
- Can the Kamiya Family Residence Plastering Room and Charcoal Room be seen?
- The interior is private, but the building faces the road on the southern boundary, so its black-boarded elevation and roofline are visible from the street.
- What was a plastering room used for?
- It was the workspace and tool store of the plasterer. An estate with several mud-walled storehouses required continual repair of its plaster and earth surfaces.
- How large is this building?
- 32 square metres, single-storey timber with a gabled tiled roof, dated to around 1905.
- How is it related to the main gate?
- The two were built as a continuous range. Its ridge is one step higher than the gate, while its courtyard eaves are aligned with those of the gate.
- When was it registered?
- On 18 April 2008, under number 23-0291, in the same batch as thirteen other buildings on the estate.
Basic Information
| Name | Kamiya Family Residence Plastering Room and Charcoal Room (神谷家住宅左官部屋及び炭部屋) |
|---|---|
| Location | 13 Kaminokiri, Izumicho, Anjo City, Aichi Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Building) |
| Year Designated | 2008 (Heisei 20), registered |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Single-storey timber, floor area 32 square metres |
| Owner | Private |
| Public Access | Not open to the public; street elevation visible from the public road |
References
- Agency for Cultural Affairs, National Cultural Properties Database: Kamiya Family Residence Plastering Room and Charcoal Room
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00007040
- Cultural Heritage Online: Kamiya Family Residence Plastering Room and Charcoal Room
- https://online.bunka.go.jp/heritages/detail/172342
- City of Anjo: Historic Buildings
- https://www.city.anjo.aichi.jp/shisei/shisetsu/kyoikushisetsu/maibun-structure.html
- Anjo City Cultural Properties Catalogue: Kamiya Family Residence Main House
- https://www.katch.ne.jp/~anjomuse/bunkazai_zuroku/kamiyake_jyuutaku/index.html
- City of Anjo: Jozanen Garden
- https://www.city.anjo.aichi.jp/shisei/shisetsu/kyoikushisetsu/jozanen.html
Last verified: 2026.08.30