Higashimaru Soy Sauce Former Head Office Factory Brewing Storehouse No. 2: A Taisho Storehouse Built Around 2-Meter Vats
The Higashimaru Soy Sauce Former Head Office Factory Brewing Storehouse No. 2 (ヒガシマル醤油元本社工場仕込蔵二, Higashimaru Shōyu Moto-Honsha Kōjō Shikomigura Ni) is a Taisho-era (1912 to 1926) soy sauce brewing storehouse in Ote, Tatsuno-cho, Tatsuno City, Hyogo Prefecture, entered on Japan's register of Registered Tangible Cultural Properties on December 24, 2013. Its registration number is 28-0572, and it is the youngest of the six buildings at the former head office factory.
It stands in the southwest corner of the south lot. The construction is single-storey Dozo-zukuri with a tiled roof, and the building area is 269 square meters. The Higashimaru Soy Sauce Former Head Office Factory Brewing Storehouse No. 2 consists of two long north-south storehouses built side by side and joined together.
Vats and Roof Framing in the Higashimaru Soy Sauce Former Head Office Factory Brewing Storehouse No. 2
According to the Agency for Cultural Affairs, the Higashimaru Soy Sauce Former Head Office Factory Brewing Storehouse No. 2 is packed with soy sauce fermentation vats about 2 meters across, set with no space to spare. In vats like these the mash of koji and brine matures over a long period. The storehouse is, in effect, a container for the vats.
Packing in vats that size needs a wide floor with few posts in the way, and for that the building uses a distinctive roof frame combining rafter beams with Wagoya framing. Wagoya is the traditional Japanese system of short struts standing on horizontal tie beams to carry the roof; rafter beams run diagonally with the pitch of the roof. Used together, they carry the weight of the roof while keeping the interior open.
Joining two buildings side by side can be read the same way: it doubles the floor for vats without making the building any deeper.
Why the Higashimaru Soy Sauce Former Head Office Factory Brewing Storehouse No. 2 Was Registered
The building was registered as one that contributes to the historic landscape of the country. The Agency singles out the broad Hongawarabuki tiled roof of the Higashimaru Soy Sauce Former Head Office Factory Brewing Storehouse No. 2 as something that adds character to the soy sauce works.
The two long gabled roofs, running parallel, hold down the southwest corner of the site with real weight. Although built in the Taisho era, it follows the same earthen-walled construction and heavy tile roofing as the older storehouses, so the factory still reads as a single piece.
Seeing the Higashimaru Soy Sauce Former Head Office Factory Brewing Storehouse No. 2
The Higashimaru Soy Sauce Former Head Office Factory Brewing Storehouse No. 2 is a factory building, and there is no announced public opening of its interior. The vats and the roof framing cannot be seen from outside.
The roof is the thing to look at. The two parallel tiled roofs, one beside the other, only show their full bulk when you look up at them from outside the site. Stay on the street rather than entering.
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Q&A
- What is the Higashimaru Soy Sauce Former Head Office Factory Brewing Storehouse No. 2?
- It is a Taisho-era soy sauce brewing storehouse in the southwest corner of the south lot in Ote, Tatsuno City, Hyogo Prefecture. Two long north-south storehouses are set side by side and joined. It is single-storey and earthen-walled with a tiled roof and a building area of 269 square meters.
- When was the Higashimaru Soy Sauce Former Head Office Factory Brewing Storehouse No. 2 built, and when was it registered?
- The Agency for Cultural Affairs dates it to the Taisho era (1912 to 1926). It was registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on December 24, 2013, under number 28-0572.
- What is inside the Higashimaru Soy Sauce Former Head Office Factory Brewing Storehouse No. 2?
- Soy sauce fermentation vats about 2 meters across, packed closely together.
- What is special about the roof framing of the Higashimaru Soy Sauce Former Head Office Factory Brewing Storehouse No. 2?
- It combines rafter beams with traditional wagoya framing, which frees up enough open space to line up the large vats.
- Can visitors see the Higashimaru Soy Sauce Former Head Office Factory Brewing Storehouse No. 2?
- There is no announced public opening of the interior, so the visit is to the exterior from the street. No official guidance on photography could be found, so photograph from the street without entering the site.
Basic Information
| Name | Higashimaru Soy Sauce Former Head Office Factory Brewing Storehouse No. 2 (ヒガシマル醤油元本社工場仕込蔵二) |
|---|---|
| Location | 54-1 Ote, Tatsuno-cho, Tatsuno City, Hyogo Prefecture, and other lots |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (building), registration no. 28-0572 |
| Year Designated | Registered December 24, 2013 |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Earthen-walled storehouse construction, single storey, tiled roof, building area 269 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 Shikomigura Ni
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00009814
- Cultural Heritage Online: Higashimaru Shoyu Moto-Honsha Kojo Shikomigura Ni
- https://bunka.nii.ac.jp/heritages/detail/274563
- Tatsuno City: Higashimaru Shoyu Moto-Honsha Kojo (Former Head Office Factory)
- https://www.city.tatsuno.lg.jp/soshiki/1041/gyomu/5/4/4099.html
Last verified: 2026.09.30
