Three Stories on a Small Footprint: The Nakamura Document Storehouse
On the Nakamura estate in Makabe, Sakuragawa City, Ibaraki, a tall, narrow storehouse rises near the centre of the grounds, on their eastern side. The Nakamura Family Residence Bunkogura (Nakamura-ya jūtaku bunkogura) is a bunkogura, a fireproof storehouse built to keep documents and books safe from fire and damp. It dates from the Meiji period, the decades after 1868.
Its footprint is tiny, only about 26 square metres, yet it stands three stories high. The builders reached that height by holding each floor low, stacking three shallow levels rather than two tall ones. The structure is a thick-walled clay storehouse (dozō-zukuri) with its ridge running north to south, gabled and roofed in flush ceramic pantile. At the southern end of the west face, a pair of outward-opening double doors (kannon-tobira) sits beneath a small eave.
Several Nakamura residences stand in Makabe. This storehouse belongs to the estate read Nakamura-ya, the same grounds that hold the shoin-style main house and the gabled gate, and it is a separate household from the Nakamura-ke merchant complex of 1913 in the Shinjukuchō block.
Small in Scale, Careful in Making
The storehouse is a Registered Tangible Cultural Property, registered on 25 June 2002 (registration number 08-0064) under the criterion that marks a building as a model of its type. Registration is the lighter of Japan's two protections for historic architecture, distinct from the stricter designation given to National Treasures and Important Cultural Properties, and it was created in 1996 to keep ordinary historic buildings in use.
The official record makes a point that is easy to overlook: this is a small building made with unusual care and ingenuity. A three-story storehouse on so compact a plan is itself a clever solution, packing protected storage into a confined corner of the estate. The exterior carries the detail of a far grander structure. A plastered band runs along the top of the walls, and below it the lime-plaster surface is clad in clapboard, a sheathing that shields the soft plaster from rain. The result is a storehouse that earns attention through quality rather than size.
What to Look For on a Visit
Look up. The storehouse reads as taller than its neighbours because of its three low floors, and the proportions reward a second glance once you know the trick. Find the double doors at the south end of the west face, the working entrance to a building meant to hold the family's papers under lock against fire.
The storehouse makes most sense as one part of a composed estate. The shoin-style main house sits toward the western centre of the grounds, the document storehouse near the eastern middle, and a gabled gate with its plastered wall closes the northern edge along the street. Reading the three together shows how a substantial Makabe household separated reception, storage and boundary within a single walled compound. The estate is privately held and not arranged for interior visits, so view it from the public road and the street-facing gate and wall.
For the wider town, the Makabe Hina Matsuri from early February into early March is the season when the district most opens itself, with festival dolls displayed across many houses and the streets full of visitors. A walk among the granite-marked registered buildings pairs well with the festival even when individual estates remain closed.
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Q&A
- What is a bunkogura?
- A bunkogura is a fireproof clay-walled storehouse built specifically to protect documents and books. Families used such buildings to guard valuable records against fire and damp.
- How can it be three stories on such a small footprint?
- The builders kept each floor low and stacked three shallow levels on a plan of only about 26 square metres. The record notes this as a particularly resourceful piece of storehouse design.
- Why is the plaster covered with wooden boards?
- Below a plastered band at the top of the walls, the lime plaster is sheathed in clapboard. The boards protect the soft plaster surface from rain, a common refinement on well-built storehouses.
- Which Nakamura residence is this?
- It is part of the estate read Nakamura-ya, alongside the shoin-style main house and the gate and wall. The Nakamura-ke merchant complex of 1913 is a separate property elsewhere in Makabe.
- Can I visit, and how do I reach Makabe?
- The estate is private and not open for interior visits; view it from the road. Makabe is in Sakuragawa City near Mount Tsukuba, reached by car or by bus from Iwase or Shimodate stations.
Basic Information
| Name | Nakamura Family Residence Bunkogura (Nakamura-ya jūtaku bunkogura) |
|---|---|
| Location | 391-1 Makabe, Makabe-machi, Sakuragawa City, Ibaraki Prefecture |
| Category | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (building) |
| Registered | 25 June 2002 (public notice 16 July 2002); registration no. 08-0064 |
| Built | Meiji period (after 1868) |
| Structure | Three-story clay storehouse, gabled, pantile roof, building area approx. 26 m²; 1 building |
| Registration criterion | A model of its type in design |
| Access | Private estate; not open for interior visits. View from the public road. Makabe Hina Matsuri (Feb-Mar) |
References
- Agency for Cultural Affairs, National Cultural Properties Database: Nakamura Family Residence Bunkogura
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00002750
- Sakuragawa City Tourism Association: Makabe and the Preservation District
- https://www.kankou-sakuragawa.jp/page/page000256.html
- Council for Preservation Districts: Sakuragawa City Makabe
- https://www.denken.gr.jp/archive/sakuragawa-makabe/index.html
- Ibaraki Prefectural Board of Education: Sakuragawa City Makabe Preservation District
- https://kyoiku.pref.ibaraki.jp/bunkazai/bunkazai-8557/
Last verified: 2026.06.25