A Brewing Storehouse of 1908–1909
The Marukin Soy Sauce Fermentation Storehouse (マルキン醤油発酵蔵) is a storehouse built for brewing soy sauce of 1908–1909 in Noma, Shodoshima Town, Kagawa Prefecture, and was registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property (structure) on December 20, 1996 (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
The Agency records a single-storey timber building with a tile roof and a building area of 1462 square metres; registration number 37-0003.
It was registered on the same day as the Marukin Memorial Hall, making the two the first buildings at Marukin Soy Sauce to be registered.
A Long Storehouse Showing Its Gable to the Road
The Agency describes the Marukin Soy Sauce Fermentation Storehouse as an earthen-walled storehouse for brewing soy sauce, distinguished by the long board-clad gable it shows to the road. Its structure entry, however, reads single-storey timber, so the two parts of the record differ.
On the database coordinates the Marukin Soy Sauce Fermentation Storehouse lies east of the Memorial Hall and south of the No. 4 and No. 5 storehouses. Morita's company history says the "Marukin natural brewing storehouse" was registered in 1996. Only this building and the Memorial Hall were registered that year, but official sources do not confirm that the company means this one.
Why It Was Registered
The Agency regards the Marukin Soy Sauce Fermentation Storehouse, together with the Memorial Hall, as essential to understanding the landscape of Shodoshima, an island that prospered from soy sauce brewing from the late Edo period. It was registered as contributing to the historic landscape of the country.
What to Look For
Start with the gable end facing the road. The Agency singles out this long, board-clad gable presented to the street as the defining feature of the Marukin Soy Sauce Fermentation Storehouse, and it stands out among the white-walled storehouses of the district.
At 1462 square metres it is the largest of the four registered buildings at Marukin Soy Sauce. Looking along the roof from the corner of the street gives the best sense of how far it runs back from that gable.
Visiting
The Marukin Soy Sauce Fermentation Storehouse is part of a working factory, and no official notice naming this building as open inside was found (November 2026). Its gable end, which the Agency says faces the road, is the side visitors can see.
On the database coordinates, the Marukin Soy Sauce Fermentation Storehouse lies about 70 metres east of the Marukin-mae bus stop in a straight line. Please stay outside the factory grounds.
Q&A
- When was the Marukin Soy Sauce Fermentation Storehouse built?
- In 1908–1909 (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
- What is distinctive about the Marukin Soy Sauce Fermentation Storehouse?
- Its long, board-clad gable end facing the road (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
- How large is the Marukin Soy Sauce Fermentation Storehouse?
- A single-storey timber building with a tile roof and a building area of 1462 square metres (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
- Can I go inside the Marukin Soy Sauce Fermentation Storehouse?
- No official notice naming this building as open inside was found (November 2026).
- When was the Marukin Soy Sauce Fermentation Storehouse registered?
- On December 20, 1996 (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
Basic Information
| Name | Marukin Soy Sauce Fermentation Storehouse (マルキン醤油発酵蔵) |
|---|---|
| Location | 1850 Noma-ko, Shodoshima-cho, Shozu-gun, Kagawa Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Structure) |
| Year Designated | Registered 1996/12/20 (Heisei 8) |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Timber, single-storey, tile roof, building area 1462 m² |
| Owner | Marukin Chuyu Co., Ltd. |
| Public Access | Part of a working factory; no notice of interior access |
References
- Marukin Soy Sauce Fermentation Storehouse (Database of National Cultural Properties, Agency for Cultural Affairs)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/101/00000102
- Marukin Soy Sauce Fermentation Storehouse (Cultural Heritage Online)
- https://online.bunka.go.jp/heritages/detail/165412
- Registered Tangible Cultural Properties in Kagawa (Kagawa Prefectural Board of Education, Japanese)
- https://www.pref.kagawa.lg.jp/kenkyoui/shogaigakushu/bunkazai/culturalassets/culturalassets_16.html
- Modern industrial heritage of Hishio no Sato (Shodoshima Town, Japanese)
- https://www.town.shodoshima.lg.jp/gyousei/kakuka/shogaigakushuka/2/1/3151.html
- History of Marukin (Morita Co., Ltd., Japanese)
- https://marukin.moritakk.com/history/
Last verified: 2026.11.12
