A 1945 study joined to the tea house
The Matsumoto Family Residence Detached House (松本家住宅離れ, Matsumoto-ke Jūtaku Hanare) is a study built in 1945 on the Matsumoto family estate in Nakanosaku, Iwaki City, Fukushima Prefecture, and listed as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on 11 December 1998. It is a single-storey timber building with a tiled roof and a building area of 39 square metres.
It is joined to the west side of the tea house in the northeast of the grounds. The roof is hipped, and the registration number is 07-0027. The Agency for Cultural Affairs records that the master carpenter Ōtsuka Momotarō of Hachiōji, in western Tokyo, built it.
A ten-mat Western room inside a veranda
At the centre of the Matsumoto Family Residence Detached House is a single Western-style room of about ten mats. A veranda and a corridor run around it, so the room sits one layer back from the outside.
The bookshelves and bay windows were part of the building from the start, and the Agency takes them as the evidence that it was made as a study. The shelves were not furniture added later but built into the room, which says plainly what the client wanted the space for.
The outside reads as Japanese, with a hipped tile roof and a veranda; the inside is Western. The tea house next door is the place for receiving guests, and this is the place where the head of the house sat with his books.
Why it was registered
The detached house was registered as a model of design. The Agency values it as a surviving piece of the everyday culture of an old family that has brewed sake since 1835.
That the builder's name is on record adds to its value as a document. With the tea house, it was one of the first two buildings in Iwaki City to be registered.
What to look for
Look for the fittings that make it a study: the bay windows, which bring more light into the room, and the built-in bookshelves. Together they show a room planned for reading and writing.
Then look at how it meets the tea house. A building of tatami rooms for tea and a building centred on a Western study are joined directly, so this one corner of the Matsumoto Family Residence holds both the family's hospitality and its private retreat.
Visiting
The Matsumoto Family Residence Detached House is part of a private home, and its interior is not open to the public. No opening had been announced as of October 2026.
It stands inside the grounds, and published sources do not say how much of it is visible from the road. Entering the property is not possible, and photographs should be limited to what can be taken from the street.
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- Find tours, activities & transport passes near Matsumoto Family Residence Detached House
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Q&A
- Can I visit the Matsumoto Family Residence Detached House?
- It is part of a private home and the interior is not open to the public. No opening had been announced as of October 2026, and the grounds cannot be entered.
- When was the Matsumoto Family Residence Detached House built and registered?
- It was built in 1945 and registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on 11 December 1998, under number 07-0027.
- Who built the Matsumoto Family Residence Detached House?
- According to the Agency for Cultural Affairs, the master carpenter Ōtsuka Momotarō of Hachiōji in western Tokyo.
- What is inside the Matsumoto Family Residence Detached House?
- A Western-style room of about ten mats surrounded by a veranda and a corridor, with bookshelves and bay windows that were there from the start. It was built as a study.
- How does the Matsumoto Family Residence Detached House connect to the tea house?
- It is joined to the west side of the tea house in the northeast of the grounds. The tea house has a gabled roof and the detached house a hipped one, and both were registered on the same day.
Basic Information
| Name | Matsumoto Family Residence Detached House |
|---|---|
| Location | 31-1 Enokido, Nakanosaku, Iwaki City, Fukushima Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Building) |
| Year Designated | Registered 1998/12/11 (Heisei 10) |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Single-storey timber building, tiled roof, building area 39 square metres |
| Owner | Private owner |
| Public Access | Closed to the public (no opening announced) |
References
- National Cultural Properties Database (Agency for Cultural Affairs): Matsumoto Family Residence Detached House
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00000942
- Cultural Heritage Online: Matsumoto Family Residence Detached House
- https://bunka.nii.ac.jp/heritages/detail/166252
- Iwaki City: Registered Tangible Cultural Properties in Iwaki (as of 10 September 2019)
- https://www.city.iwaki.lg.jp/www/contents/1001000004791/files/tourokubunkazai.pdf
Last verified: 2026.10.07
