Shioda Family Residence South Storehouse: A Small Vault Perched Over the River Bend
At a bend of the Umaki River in the Maki district of Shodoshima, Kagawa Prefecture, a compact earthen storehouse rises with its west face standing directly on the river's stone embankment. This is the south storehouse of the Shioda Family Residence, the smallest of the five registered Shioda structures and part of the compound held by the family behind Yamasan Soy Sauce. It dates from the early Showa period.
The building runs north to south under a hongawara-tiled kirizuma gable, a two-storey dozo of thick earthen walls with a footprint of only about twenty square meters. A lean-to is fixed to the north gable end to make a small forecourt for the storehouse. What the building lacks in size it makes up for in siting, wedged where the river turns and reading, from across the water, as a piece of the embankment itself.
Why It Was Registered
The south storehouse joined the national register of Tangible Cultural Properties on 25 June 2002, in the thirty-third round, under the criterion of contributing to the historic landscape of the country. Its value lies less in scale than in how carefully its small exterior was handled and how firmly it sits in the riverside scene.
Look at the wall in section and the intent is clear. The granite base here is set thicker than the base of the perimeter wall, giving the little storehouse a heavier footing where it meets the water. Above the stone runs a tall boarded dado, and at the line where the boarding meets the plastered wall above, a course of mizukiri drip tiles is set in. That single band of tiles throws rain clear of the wall below and, at the same time, breaks the surface into layers, so the storehouse gains variety and rhythm without any added ornament.
What to Look For
Find a spot across the Umaki River and take in the west face. From there the storehouse and the stone embankment form a single vertical wall rising from the water, one of the most photographed relationships in the brewing quarter. The drip-tile course reads as a fine dark line partway up the wall.
Then compare the layers: granite below, boarding in the middle, plaster above, each with its own texture and each doing a job against weather. For a building this small, the amount of thought given to its skin is the point. The residence is private and in daily use, so the storehouse is enjoyed from the public riverside path; walking the lanes of Hishio no Sato lets you see how it fits among the taller buildings of the compound.
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Q&A
- How big is the south storehouse?
- Its footprint is about twenty square meters, making it the smallest of the five registered Shioda buildings.
- What are the mizukiri drip tiles?
- A course of tiles set where the boarded dado meets the plaster wall. They shed rainwater clear of the lower wall and add a layered look to the exterior.
- Why does it stand on the river embankment?
- Its west face is built directly on the stone embankment at a bend in the Umaki River, so the storehouse and the embankment read as one wall from across the water.
- When was it registered?
- On 25 June 2002, in the same round as the other early-Showa Shioda structures, for its part in the historic landscape.
- Where is the best view?
- From the riverside path on the far bank, which shows the west face rising from the water. The building is private, so it is viewed from outside.
Basic Information
| Name | Shioda Family Residence South Storehouse |
|---|---|
| Location | 140-2 Ishii-ko, Noma, Shodoshima-cho, Shozu-gun, Kagawa Prefecture |
| Category | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Structure) |
| Registration date | 25 June 2002 (Heisei 14), 33rd round |
| Count | One building |
| Period | Early Showa |
| Structure | Two-storey earthen storehouse; tiled roof; building area about 20 sq m |
| Owner and use | Yamasan Soy Sauce (private, operating property) |
| Access | Exterior only, viewable from the riverside path |
References
- National Database of Designated Cultural Properties, Agency for Cultural Affairs
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/101/00002828
- Cultural Heritage Online, Agency for Cultural Affairs
- https://online.bunka.go.jp/heritages/detail/138598
- Soy Sauce Warehouses and Stone-Tool Streetscape (Japan Heritage)
- https://japan-heritage.bunka.go.jp/ja/culturalproperties/result/4568/
- Hishio no Sato Industrial Heritage, Shodoshima Town
- https://www.town.shodoshima.lg.jp/gyousei/kakuka/shogaigakushuka/2/1/3151.html
Last verified: 2026.07.10