The Core of the Compound
The Maruoka Family Residence Main House (丸岡家住宅主屋) is the principal dwelling of a merchant compound in Shimotakase, Mino-cho, Mitoyo City, Kagawa Prefecture, built between the late Taisho and early Showa eras, from 1919 to 1926, and entered in Japan's register of Registered Tangible Cultural Property on 31 October 2022.
It is a two-storey timber building of 70 square metres, Irimoya-zukuri in form and roofed in Hongawarabuki round-and-flat tiles. It stands behind the entrance wing, separated from it by a courtyard, and extends a wing to the southwest that houses the bathhouse. It was repaired in 1977.
The Agency for Cultural Affairs identifies the Maruoka Family Residence Main House as the core of the compound. It sits in the middle of the plot, past the gate and past the entrance wing, and it is the only one of the eight registered structures with formal rooms on two levels.
A Formal Ground Floor and an Open Upper One
The ground floor of the Maruoka Family Residence Main House holds a Zashiki reception room with a Buddhist altar bay and a Tsukeshoin built-in writing alcove. Giving the altar room the trappings of a guest room makes it the most formal space in the house.
The upper floor works in the opposite direction. It is an open room ringed by a veranda and a Kōran balustrade, turned outward rather than inward. A merchant house that opens its second storey this far was built with something to look at in mind. From the centre of the old village of Shimotakase, the room commands both the road and the compound below it.
The registration criterion is contribution to the historic landscape, which applies to six of the eight structures. The front gate and entrance wing were judged on design; the Maruoka Family Residence Main House was listed for the part it plays in the shape of the place.
What to Look At
A scallop-shaped ornamental tile sits on the roof of the Maruoka Family Residence Main House. The Agency for Cultural Affairs mentions it specifically, treating it as a marker of the building's standing at the centre of the compound. On a heavy field of round-and-flat tiles, one tile of a different shape. If you are looking up from outside the wall, this is the thing to look for.
In plan, the southwest wing does the work. A single ridge runs out from the main block and ends in the bathhouse, so a square footprint sprouts one narrow limb and the roofline breaks where it does.
The courtyard between the main house and the entrance wing is worth registering as a deliberate choice. The two buildings were not joined into one; a piece of outdoors was inserted between them. The building for receiving guests and the building for living in are kept distinctly apart.
At 70 square metres, the Maruoka Family Residence Main House covers less ground than the entrance wing at 77 square metres. Two storeys give it more floor area overall, but on the plan itself it yields to the room where customers were received.
Visiting
The Maruoka Family Residence Main House is closed and the grounds cannot be entered. Because it stands in the middle of the plot, what is visible from the road is the upper part of the hip-and-gable roof: the main ridge and the ridge-end tiles at either end of it.
The tile type can be identified at a distance. Rows of round capping tiles throw a striped shadow that flat pantiles do not. Three of the eight structures use them, the main house, the entrance wing and the rear earthen wall; the other five are pantiled.
This is a private home with no reception desk and no visitor parking, and photography is limited to what can be taken from the public road. The history of the compound and directions to it are covered on the Maruoka Family Residence page.
Q&A
- Can I go inside the Maruoka Family Residence Main House?
- No. It is a private home, closed to the public, and the grounds cannot be entered. From the road you can see the upper part of the roof.
- When was the Maruoka Family Residence Main House built and registered?
- Between 1919 and 1926, spanning the late Taisho and early Showa eras, with repairs in 1977. It was registered on 31 October 2022 under number 37-0469.
- What rooms does the Maruoka Family Residence Main House contain?
- On the ground floor, a reception room with a Buddhist altar bay and a built-in writing alcove. Upstairs, an open room with a veranda and balustrade. A wing to the southwest holds the bathhouse.
- What is the ornamental tile on the Maruoka Family Residence Main House?
- A scallop-shaped tile set on the roof. The Agency for Cultural Affairs cites it as a mark of the building's place at the centre of the compound, and its outline differs from the surrounding tiles.
- Which station is closest to the Maruoka Family Residence Main House?
- Mino Station on the JR Yosan Line, about 830 metres away, roughly 11 minutes on foot.
Basic Information
| Name | Maruoka Family Residence Main House |
|---|---|
| Location | 533-1 Otsui, Shimotakase, Mino-cho, Mitoyo City, Kagawa Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Structure) |
| Year Designated | Registered 31 October 2022 |
| Quantity | 1 structure |
| Dimensions | Wood, 2 storeys, tiled roof, building area 70 square metres |
| Owner | Private owner |
| Public Access | Closed to the public. No interior access |
References
- Maruoka Family Residence Main House — National Cultural Properties Database, Agency for Cultural Affairs
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00014418
- Maruoka Family Residence Main House — Cultural Heritage Online
- https://online.bunka.go.jp/heritages/detail/523497
- Registered Tangible Cultural Properties — Mitoyo City
- https://www.city.mitoyo.lg.jp/kakuka/kyouikuiinkai/shogai/3_1/history_bunnkazai/13938.html
Last verified: 2026.09.14
