Takinami Family Residence Tool Storehouse

About the Takinami Family Residence Tool Storehouse

The Takinami Family Residence Tool Storehouse (瀧波家住宅道具蔵, Takinami-ke Jūtaku Dōgugura) is a clay-walled storehouse built around 1887 between the detached room and the large storehouse on the Takinami property in Honmachi 3-chome, Sabae City, Fukui Prefecture, and was registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on March 29, 2013.

It is a two-storey Dozo-zukuri building with a Kirizuma-zukuri gabled roof of Sangawara-buki pantiles, its ridge running north to south. At 6.5 meters long and 3.8 meters deep, with a footprint of 31 square meters, it is less than half the size of the large storehouse. A dōgugura is generally the store for household effects such as serving trays, lacquered bowls and the equipment brought out for family occasions.

Black Plaster and a Weight-Shaped Emblem

What sets the Takinami Family Residence Tool Storehouse apart is how much care went into finishing so small a building. According to the Agency for Cultural Affairs, the walls are lime-plastered in Shikkui above a stone-faced base, while the Nokijabara cornice moldings under the eaves and other details are done in black plaster. A dark band runs along the top of the white walls and sharpens the outline of the whole building.

The other detail is the earthen door, which bears a large fundō pattern. A fundō is the counterweight used on a balance scale, with a pinched waist on each side. Here a motif taken from the tools of trade is displayed in large scale on the door of a merchant family's storehouse.

The tool storehouse dates from around 1887, like the main house and the large storehouse, which shows that the house and both stores were in place at about the same time. It was registered under the criterion that it contributes to the historic landscape of the country.

Placement and Doorway

The Takinami tool storehouse fits between the detached room behind the main house and the large storehouse to the north. The large storehouse runs east to west and the tool storehouse runs north to south, so the two stores stand roughly at right angles to each other.

The doorway is in the south gable, sheltered by a lean-to roof. Sabae City notes that the ground floor is faced in stone and the upper floor is plastered white all over. Stone base, white walls, black eaves and the emblem on the door add up to a storehouse that was meant to be looked at, even though it stands a little back from the main buildings.

Viewing the Takinami Family Residence Tool Storehouse

The Takinami Family Residence Tool Storehouse stands at the back of a private property, and Sabae City states that its interior is not open to the public. No open days or special viewings have been announced.

Because it sits behind the main house and the large storehouse, it is probably hard to make out from the old Hokuriku Kaidō. There is no published rule on photography, but please stay off the property.