What Is the Hakubotan Sake Brewery Tenpogura Chimney?
The Hakubotan Sake Brewery Tenpogura Chimney (白牡丹酒造天保蔵煙突, Hakubotan Shuzō Tenpōgura Entotsu) is a brick chimney of the early Meiji period (1868 to 1882) at Tenpogura in Saijo Honmachi, Higashihiroshima City, Hiroshima Prefecture, registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on June 28, 2017. It stands northwest of the Tenpogura Brewing Storehouse, 21 meters tall on a square base 1.7 meters a side.
The brickwork is laid in English bond, and near the top the brand name 白牡丹 (Hakubotan) is fixed to the shaft in kanji. The registered area is 2.8 square meters. Its registration number, 34-0241, is the last in the consecutive run of eight Hakubotan structures.
A brewery chimney lifts smoke from the fires under the rice-steaming cauldrons clear of the roofs. With the brand name on it, Hakubotan Sake Brewery Tenpogura Chimney also tells anyone at a distance whose storehouses these are.
Why Tenpogura Chimney Was Registered
Tenpogura Chimney was listed as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property, number 34-0241, for its contribution to the historic landscape. The Agency for Cultural Affairs describes it as an especially tall stack in a town full of chimneys, loved locally as a symbol of Saijo as a sake town.
In Saijo, the brick chimneys of different brewers rise one after another above tiled roofs, and this one marks the Hakubotan name in that skyline. Six of the eight Hakubotan structures were registered for their contribution to the landscape, and this chimney is one of them.
The national database dates it, like the Enpogura chimney, to the early Meiji period. Among the four registered structures at Tenpogura, only the late-Edo well is older.
What to Look For
The feature to find on Tenpogura Chimney is the three-character name 白牡丹 near the top. The Enpogura chimney spells the brand in katakana, so Hakubotan's two registered chimneys write the same name in different scripts. The kanji here are exactly the name granted by the Takatsukasa family in 1839.
At 21 meters it is 4 meters shorter than the 25-meter Enpogura chimney, and its 1.7-meter base is slimmer than the 1.9 meters at Enpogura.
English bond alternates a course of bricks laid lengthwise with a course laid end-on. From the right angle you can make out fine horizontal banding as the visible brick faces change width from course to course.
Visiting Tenpogura Chimney
Tenpogura Chimney stands inside the Tenpogura lot and is not part of Hakubotan's visitor guide, so assume you cannot reach its base.
At 21 meters its upper part is easy to pick out from outside the grounds. Look up at it from the surrounding streets and keep photography to the public road. To read the 白牡丹 lettering, you need a viewpoint facing the lettered side.
Exhibition room hours and directions from Saijo Station are on the Hakubotan Sake Brewery group page.
- 📍 Plan Your Visit to Hiroshima
- Find tours, activities & transport passes near Hakubotan Sake Brewery Tenpogura Chimney
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FAQ
- Where can I see the Hakubotan Sake Brewery Tenpogura Chimney?
- You cannot enter the grounds, but at 21 meters the upper part can be seen from nearby streets.
- How tall is Tenpogura Chimney?
- It is 21 meters tall on a base 1.7 meters a side, built of brick in English bond.
- When was Tenpogura Chimney built?
- The national database dates it to the early Meiji period (1868 to 1882).
- How does Tenpogura Chimney differ from the Enpogura chimney?
- Tenpogura's chimney is 21 meters tall and carries the name in kanji; Enpogura's is 25 meters tall and spells it in katakana.
- When was Tenpogura Chimney registered as a cultural property?
- On June 28, 2017, as number 34-0241, for its contribution to the historic landscape.
Basic Information
| Name | Hakubotan Sake Brewery Tenpogura Chimney |
|---|---|
| Location | 879 Saijo Honmachi, Higashihiroshima City, Hiroshima Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Structure) |
| Year Designated | 2017 (registered June 28) |
| Quantity | 1 structure |
| Dimensions | Brick, area 2.8 square meters, height 21 meters (base 1.7 meters per side) |
| Owner | Hakubotan Sake Brewery Co., Ltd. |
| Public Access | Not included in the visitor guide (upper part visible from outside) |
References
- Database of National Cultural Properties: Hakubotan Sake Brewery Tenpogura Chimney (Agency for Cultural Affairs)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00011830
- Database of National Cultural Properties: Hakubotan Sake Brewery Enpogura Chimney (Agency for Cultural Affairs)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00011826
- Origin of the Brand Name (Hakubotan Sake Brewery, Japanese)
- https://www.hakubotan.co.jp/origin/
- Brewery Tours (Hakubotan Sake Brewery, Japanese)
- https://www.hakubotan.co.jp/sakagura/
Last verified: 2026.09.16
