About the Satomi Family Residence Main House
The Satomi Family Residence Main House (里見家住宅主屋, Satomi-ke Jūtaku Shuoku) is a mid-Meiji farmhouse built for silkworm rearing in Shimo-Osaka, Shimonita Town, Gunma Prefecture, and it became a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on December 5, 2007. The Agency for Cultural Affairs dates it simply to the middle of the Meiji era, while Gunma Prefecture's list of registered properties gives a construction year of 1883.
The house stands on the north side of the Satomi plot and faces south. It is a two-storey timber building under a gabled Kirizuma-zukuri roof laid with Sangawara-buki pantiles. At 18 meters long and 9.5 meters deep, with a footprint of 176 square meters, it is by far the largest of the four registered buildings on the site.
Why It Was Registered
The Satomi Family Residence Main House was registered as a model of architectural form. In the Agency's words, it preserves the character of a large sericulture farmhouse of Japan's modern period.
That character lies in how the two floors were divided. The ground floor held the household: an earth-floored Doma work area and six rooms with raised wooden floors. Upstairs, the whole floor was originally a single open room where silkworms were raised.
People lived below, silkworms above, all under one roof. An undivided upper floor 18 meters long could hold row after row of rearing trays, and the sheer size of the Satomi house probably owes as much to the silkworms as to the family.
Two Raised Vents on the Ridge
From outside, the feature to look for on the Satomi house is on the ridge. The Agency records two Koshi-yane, small raised roofs set over the main roof to let air escape through the gap beneath them. They ventilated the silkworm room on the upper floor.
Two of these little roofs sit apart along the long gable, and they are the clearest outward sign that the upper floor once served the silkworms.
In front of the main house, the miso storehouse and the gate stand along the road. Seen from the street, the large roof of the house rises behind those two smaller buildings.
Visiting the Satomi Family Residence Main House
The Satomi Family Residence Main House is a private home and its interior is not open to the public, so neither the six ground-floor rooms nor the former silkworm room upstairs can be seen.
Because the house sits at the back of the plot, it can only be viewed from the road past the buildings in front. Please stay off the property and take photographs only from the public road.
- 📍 Plan Your Visit to Gunma
- Find tours, activities & transport passes near Satomi Family Residence Main House
- [ Kusatsu Onsen & Tomioka Silk Mill Heritage Tours ]
Q&A
- When was the Satomi Family Residence Main House built?
- The Agency for Cultural Affairs dates it to the middle of the Meiji era. Gunma Prefecture's list of registered properties gives 1883.
- Why is the Satomi Family Residence Main House a Registered Tangible Cultural Property?
- It was registered on December 5, 2007, as a model of architectural form that preserves the character of a large modern sericulture farmhouse.
- What was the upper floor of the Satomi Family Residence Main House used for?
- It was originally a single open room used for raising silkworms. The family lived on the ground floor, which has an earth-floored area and six rooms.
- What are the small roofs on top of the Satomi Family Residence Main House?
- They are koshi-yane, raised vents on the ridge. There are two of them, and they let air out of the silkworm room on the upper floor.
- Can visitors go inside the Satomi Family Residence Main House?
- No. It is a private home and the interior is closed to the public. The exterior can be viewed from the public road.
Basic Information
| Name | Satomi Family Residence Main House |
|---|---|
| Location | 48 Takenohana, Shimo-Osaka, Shimonita-machi, Kanra-gun, Gunma Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Structure) |
| Year Designated | Registered on December 5, 2007 |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Building area 176 square meters; 18 meters by 9.5 meters |
| Owner | Private individual |
| Public Access | Not open to the public (private residence) |
References
- Database of National Cultural Properties: Satomi Family Residence Main House (Agency for Cultural Affairs, Japanese)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/101/00006624
- Cultural Heritage Online: Satomi Family Residence Main House (Japanese)
- https://online.bunka.go.jp/heritages/detail/119697
- Gunma Prefecture: List of Registered Tangible Cultural Properties in Gunma (PDF, Japanese)
- https://www.pref.gunma.jp/uploaded/attachment/677575.pdf
Last verified: 2026.10.03
