Higashimaru Soy Sauce Former Head Office Factory Raw Material Storehouse and Brewing Storehouse: A Composite Building with Its Long Wall on the Water
The Higashimaru Soy Sauce Former Head Office Factory Raw Material Storehouse and Brewing Storehouse (ヒガシマル醤油元本社工場原料庫及び仕込蔵, Higashimaru Shōyu Moto-Honsha Kōjō Genryōko oyobi Shikomigura) is a mid-Meiji (1883 to 1897) building of a soy sauce works in Ote, Tatsuno-cho, Tatsuno City, Hyogo Prefecture, a composite of a raw material store joined to a salt-dissolving room, brewing storehouse, mash room and workroom, entered on Japan's register of Registered Tangible Cultural Properties on December 24, 2013. Its registration number is 28-0570.
It occupies the northeast corner of the south lot. The construction is single-storey Dozo-zukuri under a tiled roof partly replaced with sheet metal, and the building area is 678 square meters, making the Higashimaru Soy Sauce Former Head Office Factory Raw Material Storehouse and Brewing Storehouse the second largest of the six, after the Office and Pressing House.
The Five Parts of the Higashimaru Soy Sauce Former Head Office Factory Raw Material Storehouse and Brewing Storehouse
The Agency for Cultural Affairs describes the Higashimaru Soy Sauce Former Head Office Factory Raw Material Storehouse and Brewing Storehouse as built around the earthen-walled raw material store that runs along its east side. A two-storey salt-dissolving room joins it on the west, and on the south it connects to a brewing storehouse, a mash room and a workroom. Five parts that could easily have stood as separate buildings are treated as one composite building.
The salt-dissolving room was, as its name suggests, presumably where the brine for brewing was made. Soy sauce mash is started by adding salt water to koji, the grain on which the fermenting mould has been grown. Storing the ingredients, preparing the brine and setting the mash, the first half of the process, therefore happen side by side under this one roof.
For Tatsuno's usukuchi soy sauce, Higashimaru's museum lists wheat and rice from the Harima plain, soybeans from the foothills and salt from Ako as the raw materials. It is reasonable to picture grain and salt like these being carried into the store.
The East Wall of the Higashimaru Soy Sauce Former Head Office Factory Raw Material Storehouse and Brewing Storehouse and Why It Was Registered
The Agency's assessment centres on the east wall, which faces a watercourse. The upper wall is plastered in Shikkui, the lower part is clad in vertical boards (Tateita-bari), and a row of small ventilation windows runs along it; the Agency says the wall gives order to the street scene. For a store that had to keep grain and salt dry, windows set high in the wall read as openings for airflow.
The building was registered for its contribution to the historic landscape of the country. Tatsuno City lists the arrangement of the blocks along a watercourse as one of the defining features of the former head office factory, and nowhere is that clearer than on the east face of the Higashimaru Soy Sauce Former Head Office Factory Raw Material Storehouse and Brewing Storehouse.
Seeing the Higashimaru Soy Sauce Former Head Office Factory Raw Material Storehouse and Brewing Storehouse
The Higashimaru Soy Sauce Former Head Office Factory Raw Material Storehouse and Brewing Storehouse is a factory building, and there is no announced public opening of its interior. Its main feature, the east wall, is visible from outside.
From the watercourse side you can follow the line where white plaster meets vertical boarding, with the small ventilation windows spaced evenly along it. The wall is long, and walking its full length to count the windows is a good way to take it in. Keep to the street and the waterside rather than entering the site.
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Q&A
- What is the Higashimaru Soy Sauce Former Head Office Factory Raw Material Storehouse and Brewing Storehouse?
- It is a mid-Meiji composite building of a soy sauce works in the northeast corner of the south lot in Ote, Tatsuno City, Hyogo Prefecture. A raw material store is joined to a salt-dissolving room, brewing storehouse, mash room and workroom. It is single-storey and earthen-walled with a tiled roof, partly sheet metal, and a building area of 678 square meters.
- When was the Higashimaru Soy Sauce Former Head Office Factory Raw Material Storehouse and Brewing Storehouse registered?
- It was registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on December 24, 2013, under number 28-0570. The Agency for Cultural Affairs dates it to the mid-Meiji period (1883 to 1897).
- What is the salt-dissolving room in the Higashimaru Soy Sauce Former Head Office Factory Raw Material Storehouse and Brewing Storehouse?
- It is the two-storey section joined to the west of the raw material store. As the name suggests, it was presumably where the brine used for setting the soy sauce mash was prepared.
- What should I look for at the Higashimaru Soy Sauce Former Head Office Factory Raw Material Storehouse and Brewing Storehouse?
- The east wall facing the watercourse. Its upper part is plastered, its lower part clad in vertical boards, and a row of small ventilation windows runs along it; the Agency credits this wall with giving order to the street scene.
- Can visitors see the Higashimaru Soy Sauce Former Head Office Factory Raw Material Storehouse and Brewing Storehouse?
- There is no announced public opening of the interior, so the visit is to the exterior. The east wall can be seen from the watercourse side. No official guidance on photography could be found, so photograph from the street or waterside without entering the site.
Basic Information
| Name | Higashimaru Soy Sauce Former Head Office Factory Raw Material Storehouse and Brewing Storehouse (ヒガシマル醤油元本社工場原料庫及び仕込蔵) |
|---|---|
| Location | 54-1 Ote, Tatsuno-cho, Tatsuno City, Hyogo Prefecture, and other lots |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (building), registration no. 28-0570 |
| Year Designated | Registered December 24, 2013 |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Earthen-walled storehouse construction, single storey, tiled roof partly sheet metal, building area 678 square meters |
| Owner | Higashimaru Shoyu Co., Ltd. |
| Public Access | No announced public opening of the interior (exterior visible from the street) |
References
- Agency for Cultural Affairs, Database of National Cultural Properties: Higashimaru Shoyu Moto-Honsha Kojo Genryoko oyobi Shikomigura
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00009812
- Cultural Heritage Online: Higashimaru Shoyu Moto-Honsha Kojo Genryoko oyobi Shikomigura
- https://bunka.nii.ac.jp/heritages/detail/231921
- Tatsuno City: Higashimaru Shoyu Moto-Honsha Kojo (Former Head Office Factory)
- https://www.city.tatsuno.lg.jp/soshiki/1041/gyomu/5/4/4099.html
- Higashimaru Shoyu: Usukuchi Tatsuno Soy Sauce Museum
- https://www.higashimaru.co.jp/enjoy/museum/index.html
Last verified: 2026.09.30
