One Half of a Paired Storehouse
At the back of the Hinomaru Jozo lot in Masuda, in the city of Yokote, two storehouses stand side by side and are known together as the meoto-gura, the married pair. The Higashi-mae-gura is the older of the two. It runs about 22 metres along its ridge, a gabled storehouse roofed in iron sheet with plastered walls and gable faces boarded over against the rain. Sake has been stored in buildings like this since the brewery's founding here in 1689.
Why It Was Registered
Registered as a tangible cultural property in 2002, the Higashi-mae-gura keeps the carpentry of the early Meiji era with unusual clarity. Its roof is framed in a bold stacked-beam manner, with thick rafters carried from the ridge down to the side plates. This heavy, direct construction is what marks the building as early work, and it reads as a plainer, older relative of the Taisho-era storehouse that stands immediately to its east.
The two buildings share the same span across the ridge, which is why they were paired in name. Seen next to each other, they trace the shift from Meiji hand-framing to the lighter, engineered roofs that came later.
Seeing the Pair
The Higashi-mae-gura is part of the brewery's working buildings and is not open to visitors. To look inside a Masuda storehouse, head to the brewery's Bunko-gura, its decorated interior storehouse, open by reservation for a small fee. The brewery shop stocks the Mansaku no Hana labels, and the preservation district along the old street holds many houses whose interiors can be viewed.
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Q&A
- Why is it called a married pair?
- The Higashi-mae-gura and the neighbouring Higashi-ato-gura share the same ridge span and stand together, so they are known jointly as the meoto-gura.
- Can I go inside?
- No. It is a working brewery storehouse, closed to the public. The Bunko-gura is the one open for tours.
- How can I tell it apart from its neighbour?
- The Higashi-mae-gura is the earlier building, framed with heavy stacked beams; its Taisho-era partner uses a lighter, truss-based roof.
- When does it date from?
- The early Meiji era. It was registered as a tangible cultural property in 2002.
Basic Information
| Name | Hinomaru Jozo Honsha Higashi-mae-gura (East Front Storehouse) |
|---|---|
| Location | 114-2 Nanukamachi, Masuda-machi, Yokote, Akita |
| Category | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (building) |
| Registered | 14 February 2002 |
| Structure | Earthen-walled, single storey with part two storeys, iron-sheet roof; building area 151 sq m |
| Built | Early Meiji era |
| Owner | Hinomaru Jozo Co., Ltd. |
| Access | Not open to the public (working brewery building) |
References
- National Database of Designated Cultural Properties — Hinomaru Jozo Honsha Higashi-mae-gura
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00002595
- Masuda Tourism Association — Townscape and Interior Storehouses
- https://masudakanko.com/uchigura/
- Hinomaru Jozo Co., Ltd. — Official Site
- https://hinomaru-sake.com/
Last verified: 2026.07.03