Yano Family Residence Clothing Storehouse

About the Yano Family Residence Clothing Storehouse

The Yano Family Residence Clothing Storehouse (箟家住宅衣装蔵, Yano-ke Jūtaku Ishōgura) is a 2-storey fireproof dozo storehouse built in 1918 in Gogazuka 3-chome, Itami City, Hyogo Prefecture, and was entered on the register as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on March 6, 2024. It stands northwest of the main house at the western end of the estate's north edge and has a building area of 26 square meters.

What sets the Yano Clothing Storehouse apart is where it stands. It runs along the Gogazuka irrigation channel, and its walls rise from long dressed stones laid directly on top of the channel's revetment. The boundary of the estate and the edge of the water meet under this one building.

The roof is a simple gable in hongawara tiling, the heavier system of alternating flat and round tiles. Among the four buildings on the north side, this is the only one with a precise construction year. The other three were altered around 1918, the year this storehouse went up.

Why It Was Registered

The Yano Family Residence Clothing Storehouse was registered for its contribution to the historic landscape of the nation. The Agency for Cultural Affairs notes that it stands on the north edge of the plot and helps shape the townscape of the old village.

Building on the channel wall meant pushing the storehouse right out to the property line. That fits the logic of the whole estate: keep open space inside and wall the perimeter with buildings. With ten structures closing all four sides, the clothing storehouse is the piece that holds the northwest corner at the water's edge.

In Japanese houses of this kind, an ishōgura generally held formal kimono for weddings and festivals, seasonal clothing and bedding for guests. Keeping a separate storehouse for household goods, apart from the barns for grain and rice, is one measure of a family's standing.

What to Look For

Stones on the channel wall

Start at ground level. The Yano Clothing Storehouse sits on a course of long stones set along the top of the channel's masonry, and the earthen walls rise from there. Rather than digging a new footing, the builders used the existing revetment as the foundation. Of the four north-side buildings, this is the only one whose Agency description mentions such a footing.

Cedar cladding

The walls are finished in shikkui lime plaster, and the lower part, up to just below the second-floor windows, is clad in cedar boards with narrow battens covering the joints. The boards shield the plaster where rain strikes hardest and can be replaced piece by piece when they weather. White plaster above and brown timber below split the height of the storehouse into two clear bands.

Two board-floored levels

The door opens at the east end of the south wall. Both floors are laid with boards, and a staircase stands in the southeast corner. Board floors rather than beaten earth would have suited textiles and bedding, which do not tolerate damp.

Visiting

The Yano Family Residence Clothing Storehouse stands on private land and its interior is closed (checked September 26, 2026). The door faces into the estate, so it cannot be seen from outside.

The best view is from the northwest, where the building faces the channel. The photograph in the Agency's database was taken from this direction, and it shows the stone footing, the cedar cladding and the tiled gable together. Stay on the road side and do not lean out over the channel.

No sign prohibits photography. This is part of a family home, so keep your stop brief.