About the Former Uchiyama Family Residence Main House
The Former Uchiyama Family Residence Main House (旧内山家住宅主屋, Kyū-Uchiyama-ke Jūtaku Shuoku) is a 2-storey wooden house built around 1882 at 10-7 Shiromachi, Ono City, Fukui Prefecture, and registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property in 2018.
The Former Uchiyama Family Residence Main House stands near the centre of the estate and faces south. It has a Kirizuma-zukuri gabled roof with the entrance on the long side (Hirairi), and lean-to Geya roofs run all the way round it, keeping the eaves low. The building area is 180 m². It was dismantled and rebuilt in 1992 and is now the heart of Ono City's Buke Yashiki Kyu-Uchiyama-ke.
Edo-Period Formality, Built in the Meiji Era
The Former Uchiyama Family Residence Main House was registered as a model of form. What the Agency for Cultural Affairs picks out is that, though it went up well into the Meiji era, the house keeps the formality of an Edo-period samurai residence.
You see that formality where guests were received. The front entrance has a Shikidai, a low boarded step where visitors of rank were greeted, and the best room, the Zashiki, has a Nageshi rail running round the walls under a Saobuchi-tenjō ceiling of thin battens. Giving the entrance and reception room this treatment, and keeping them apart from the family's living space, is exactly how a samurai house was organised.
Roughly ten years after the domains were abolished, the Uchiyama family still built to the pattern of a samurai home. That choice, fixed in timber and plaster, is what makes the house worth registering.
Working West, Formal East
The ground floor of the Former Uchiyama Family Residence Main House divides cleanly in two. According to the Agency, the western half holds the niwa, here a board-floored work area, and the kitchen. The eastern half has four 8-mat rooms arranged in a square, like the character 田, with a 6-mat room beyond them.
Ono City describes the rooms a little differently: a reception room, a Buddhist altar room and an anteroom with the shikidai, all 8 mats, plus 6-mat and 4-mat rooms, the niwa and the kitchen; upstairs, two 10-mat rooms set at different levels, a 2-mat room and a storeroom. The two counts of 8-mat rooms do not quite match, so it is worth checking the plan for yourself on site.
The roof has a story too. Ono City says the house was originally roofed with wooden boards, which only came to light during the rebuilding. The tiles you see today date from that repair.
Seeing the Former Uchiyama Family Residence Main House
The interior of the Former Uchiyama Family Residence Main House is open to visitors. Start at the south front and look at how the shikidai entrance is set out, then step up and look overhead at the nageshi and batten ceiling in the reception room. Walk on to the niwa and kitchen on the west side and you can feel where the house changes from formal to everyday.
A covered corridor to the southeast leads to the annex. Opening days and admission are on the Former Uchiyama Family Residence (Ono) page. No official guidance on photography could be found as of September 2026, so ask at the reception.
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Q&A
- When was the Former Uchiyama Family Residence Main House built?
- The Agency for Cultural Affairs dates it to around 1882. It was dismantled and rebuilt in 1992.
- Why is the Former Uchiyama Family Residence Main House a Registered Tangible Cultural Property?
- It was registered in 2018 as a model of form, because features such as the shikidai entrance and the reception room with nageshi rails and a batten ceiling carry on the formality of an Edo-period samurai house.
- What is the floor plan of the Former Uchiyama Family Residence Main House?
- On the ground floor, the west half is a board-floored niwa and kitchen and the east half is four 8-mat rooms in a square with a 6-mat room behind. Ono City adds two 10-mat rooms at different levels upstairs.
- Did the Former Uchiyama Family Residence Main House always have a tiled roof?
- No. Ono City says it was originally roofed with wooden boards, which was discovered during the rebuilding. It is tiled today.
- Can you go inside the Former Uchiyama Family Residence Main House?
- Yes. The interior is open as part of Ono City's Buke Yashiki Kyu-Uchiyama-ke, for an admission fee. Ask at the reception about photography.
Basic Information
| Name | Former Uchiyama Family Residence Main House (旧内山家住宅主屋) |
|---|---|
| Location | 10-7 Shiromachi, Ono City, Fukui Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Building) |
| Year Designated | 2018 (registered) |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Building area 180 m² (wooden, 2 storeys) |
| Owner | Ono City |
| Public Access | Open (admission charged, as Buke Yashiki Kyu-Uchiyama-ke) |
References
- Database of National Cultural Properties (Agency for Cultural Affairs): 旧内山家住宅主屋
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00012323
- Ono City: Buke Yashiki Kyu-Uchiyama-ke, facility guide
- https://www.city.ono.fukui.jp/kosodate/bunka-rekishi/hakubutsukan/kanko/uchiyamake/uchiyamake-1.html
- Ono City: List of cultural properties
- https://www.city.ono.fukui.jp/kosodate/bunka-rekishi/shokai/bunkazai.html
Last verified: 2026.09.30
