What is the Yuasa Family Residence Main House?
The Yuasa Family Residence Main House (湯浅家住宅主屋, Yuasa-ke Jūtaku Omoya) is a townhouse-style dwelling built in 1892 on the eastern side of central Takahama, in Miyazaki, Takahama-cho, Oi District, Fukui Prefecture, and it was listed as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Registered Tangible Cultural Property) on March 13, 2025. It is a 2-story wooden building with a tiled roof and 178 square meters of building area, the largest of the four buildings registered at the Yuasa Family Residence.
The Agency for Cultural Affairs also records renovations in 1982 and 1994. Its registration number is 18-0257, and it was registered for its contribution to the historic landscape of the country. Fukui Prefecture notes that the construction date is confirmed by the house's Munafuda, the ridge tag placed in the roof when it was built.
A townhouse facing east onto the street
The Yuasa Family Residence Main House turns its front to the east, onto the street. It has a gabled roof (Kirizuma-zukuri) with the entrance on the long side parallel to the ridge (Hirairi), covered in interlocking pan tiles (Sangawara-buki). The upper floor is a Tsushi-nikai, a low half-story with little headroom, so a full ground floor carries a squat second floor above it, the usual profile of a Machiya.
On the ground floor an earth-floored Doma runs along the south side, with living rooms lined up to the north. A formal Zashiki room sits at the back in the northwest corner. The new reception wing of 1933 is attached on this northwest side.
Built to keep fire out
The agency describes the Yuasa Family Residence Main House as a townhouse built with unusual care against fire. The outer walls are finished in lime plaster (Shikkui), and the eaves are Degeta-zukuri, with a beam carried out on projecting brackets to support the eave edge. Short wing walls stand at both ends of the front; in townhouses, such walls are said to have served to stop fire spreading from the house next door.
The pent roof (Geya) is plastered right up into the underside of its eaves, and metal fittings for hanging Tsuchido are still in place at the eave edge. Tsuchido are clay-coated doors that close off openings during a fire, and these fittings show the front could be sealed with earthen doors in an emergency.
Seeing the Yuasa Family Residence Main House
The Yuasa Family Residence Main House is a privately owned home, and no opening of the interior has been confirmed. Please do not enter the grounds.
Because the east front faces the street, the bracketed eaves, the wing walls and the plastered walls can be seen from the public road. The tsuchido fittings are reported at the edge of the pent-roof eaves, so look along the eave line when you stand in the street. Keep any photographs to the exterior from the road, with consideration for the residents.
Q&A
- When was the Yuasa Family Residence Main House built?
- In 1892, a date confirmed by its ridge tag. It was renovated in 1982 and 1994.
- When and why was the Yuasa Family Residence Main House registered?
- It became a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on March 13, 2025, for its contribution to the historic landscape of the country. Its registration number is 18-0257.
- Why is the Yuasa Family Residence Main House described as fire-resistant?
- Its walls are plastered, the pent-roof eaves are sealed with plaster, and wing walls flank the front. Fittings for hanging clay fire doors also remain at the eave edge.
- What is the layout of the Yuasa Family Residence Main House?
- An earth-floored passage runs along the south side of the ground floor with rooms to the north and a formal zashiki at the back in the northwest. Above is a low tsushi-nikai half-story.
- Can I visit the Yuasa Family Residence Main House?
- It is a private home and the interior is not known to open. The east front can be seen from the public road, but do not enter the grounds.
Basic Information
| Name | Yuasa Family Residence Main House |
|---|---|
| Location | 10 Nishimiyazaki, 45 Miyazaki, Takahama-cho, Oi-gun, Fukui Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Building) |
| Year Designated | Registered March 13, 2025 |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Wooden, 2 stories, tiled roof, building area 178 m² |
| Owner | Private individual |
| Public Access | Interior closed (private home); east front visible from the public road |
References
- Database of National Cultural Properties: Yuasa Family Residence Main House (Agency for Cultural Affairs, Japanese)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/101/00015305
- Cultural Heritage Online: Yuasa Family Residence Main House (Japanese)
- https://online.bunka.go.jp/heritages/detail/622439
- Cultural Assets of Fukui: Yuasa Family Residence Main House (Fukui Prefectural Board of Education, Japanese)
- https://bunkazai.pref.fukui.lg.jp/search_category/content?detail_id=983-0
Last verified: 2026.10.02
