A Meiji Storehouse Guarding the East End of the Shop
The Miya Soy Sauce Store Side Storehouse (宮醤油店脇蔵, Miya Shōyu-ten Wakigura) is an earthen storehouse built in 1892 at a soy sauce brewery in Sanuki, Futtsu City, Chiba Prefecture, and registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property in 2007.
It stands immediately east of the shop, facing the prefectural road. The two-storey Dozo-zukuri structure measures 5 by 2 and a half bays, with a building area of 50 square metres, under a gabled pantile roof, and its walls are clad in Shitami-itabari clapboard. The gable end faces the street, with a single-leaf plastered door on each floor.
It went up in the same year as the shop and the Main House, part of the rebuilding that gave the Miya brewery its present front.
Why It Was Registered
The Miya Soy Sauce Store Side Storehouse was registered on 31 July 2007 as number 12-0075, for its contribution to the historic landscape. In the Agency for Cultural Affairs' words, it joins the shop and the Shop Storehouse in presenting a weighty face to the street.
The roof is the technical surprise. According to the Agency, its framing takes the form of a truss, a system of triangles imported from the West after the Meiji Restoration and quite unlike the stacked beams and posts of traditional Wagoya framing. The Former Rice Storehouse and East Storehouse on the same property also use trusses, but both date from 1907, so the Side Storehouse had one 15 years earlier.
What to Look For
Look up at the gable of the Miya Soy Sauce Store Side Storehouse from the road and you will see two doors stacked one above the other. An upper-floor door like this was most likely there so goods could be hauled straight in and out.
Then compare the Shop Storehouse on the far side of the shop, with its single pair of double doors. With the Side Storehouse in place from 1892, the timber shop has been framed by earthen storehouses on both sides ever since.
Visiting
The Miya Soy Sauce Store Side Storehouse stands on the road, and its exterior can be seen at any time. No interior access is advertised; ask at the shop if you have questions about the building. Directions, opening hours and brewery-tour arrangements are covered on the Miya Soy Sauce Store page.
Q&A
- When was the Miya Soy Sauce Store Side Storehouse built?
- In 1892, the same year as the neighbouring shop and the Main House behind it.
- Can you go inside the Miya Soy Sauce Store Side Storehouse?
- No interior access is advertised. The exterior is freely visible from the road.
- What is unusual about the Miya Soy Sauce Store Side Storehouse's structure?
- Its roof is framed with a truss, a Western technique. The Former Rice Storehouse and East Storehouse also use trusses, but they date from 1907, 15 years later.
- What kind of cultural property is the Miya Soy Sauce Store Side Storehouse?
- It is a Registered Tangible Cultural Property (building), registered on 31 July 2007 as number 12-0075.
- Where on the property is the Miya Soy Sauce Store Side Storehouse?
- At the eastern end of the street front, just east of the shop. The Former Rice Storehouse and East Storehouse continue south behind it.
Basic Information
| Name | Miya Soy Sauce Store Side Storehouse (宮醤油店脇蔵) |
|---|---|
| Location | 247 Nishimasaishi, Sanuki, Futtsu City, Chiba Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Building) |
| Year Designated | Registered 2007/7/31 (Heisei 19) |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | 5 by 2 and a half bays; building area 50 square metres |
| Owner | Private |
| Public Access | Exterior visible from the road; no interior access advertised |
References
- Agency for Cultural Affairs, Database of National Cultural Properties: Miya Shōyu-ten Wakigura
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00006518
- Chiba Prefectural Board of Education: Miya Shōyu-ten Tenpo and Other Buildings
- https://www.pref.chiba.lg.jp/kyouiku/bunkazai/bunkazai/q111-074.html
- Miya Shōyu-ten company profile and history
- https://www.miyashoyu.co.jp/profile.html
Last verified: 2026.09.26
