What is the Nomura Family Residence Main House?
The Nomura Family Residence Main House (野村家住宅主屋, Nomura-ke Jūtaku Shuoku) is a single-storey wooden house built in 1922 at Otsu 2578 in Nahari, Aki District, Kochi Prefecture, and it was registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on October 18, 2000. It has a tiled roof and a building area of 101 square meters.
According to the Agency for Cultural Affairs, the Nomura were one of the families known as 倉床, the households that gathered the domain's rice tax. Their Nomura Family Residence Main House stands near the road along the east side of the plot.
The house measures 4.5 ken along the ridge and 4 ken across. Taking a ken as about 1.82 meters, the core is roughly 8.2 by 7.3 meters, with lean-to roofs added on both the north and south sides. With no upper floor, the roofline has just two tiers: the main gable and the lower lean-tos beneath it.
Why it was registered
The Nomura Family Residence Main House was registered as a building that has become a model of its type. The Agency values it as a house that shows the character of the Tosa farmhouse, Tosa being the old name for Kochi.
It points to three things: a gabled roof with its ridge running east to west, a four-room plan inside laid out like the character 田, two rows of two rooms, and the finish of the gable ends. The four-room plan is a common arrangement in Japanese farmhouses.
On each gable end the lower part is clad in boards, and the wall above is coated in Tosa plaster crossed by three rows of mizukiri-gawara, small tiled ledges that jut from the wall. They are understood as a way of shedding rain off plaster in a wet climate. Boards below, plaster above, tiled ledges across the plaster: the Agency reads this combination as typical of Tosa houses.
This is not a large house. Its value lies in how completely the regional type fits into a single-storey building of 101 square meters.
What to look for
The east gable and its three tile ledges
The part of the Nomura Family Residence Main House easiest to read from outside is the east gable end, which faces the road. The materials change as your eye moves up: the board skirt, the plaster wall, then three tile ledges dividing the plaster into bands. The number of ledges varies from house to house, so counting the three here helps you see how the wall height has been divided.
The house and the East Stone Wall
The East Stone Wall runs north along the east gable, and from the gate a curved sleeve wall leads to the front door. The wall and the house stand close together, so a late-Meiji wall and the 1922 house come into view at once.
The eaves of the lean-tos
The lean-tos on the north and south sides carry their eaves a step below the main roof. Seen from the gable side, they sit like shoulders on either side of the main triangle, giving the Nomura house the low, broad outline of a single-storey building.
Visiting the Nomura Family Residence Main House
No interior opening of the Nomura Family Residence Main House has been announced, so the four-room plan cannot be seen in person. The house is viewed from the road to the east. Because the East Stone Wall is only 1.6 m high, the upper part of the gable, with its plaster and tile ledges, should be visible above it.
There is no official guidance on photography. Please stay outside the gate and view the house quietly from the road. Directions from Nahari Station and details of guided town walks are on the Nomura Family Residence (Nahari) page.
- 📍 Plan Your Visit to Kochi
- Find tours, activities & transport passes near Nomura Family Residence Main House
- [ Katsurahama Beach & Kochi Castle Ryoma Tour ]
Q&A
- When was the Nomura Family Residence Main House built?
- The Agency for Cultural Affairs database dates it to 1922. The East and South Stone Walls on the same property are older, from the late Meiji era.
- What does 倉床 mean for the Nomura Family Residence Main House?
- The Agency uses the term for families that gathered the domain's rice tax. Its description does not say what the duty involved in detail.
- Can I go inside the Nomura Family Residence Main House?
- No interior opening has been announced. Visitors view the exterior from the road on the east side.
- What should I look at on the Nomura Family Residence Main House?
- Look at the east gable end facing the road, with its board skirt, Tosa plaster wall and three rows of tiled ledges, all typical of Tosa houses.
- Why is the Nomura Family Residence Main House a Registered Tangible Cultural Property?
- It was registered on October 18, 2000, as a building that has become a model of its type. Its gabled roof, four-room plan and gable finish are seen as characteristic of Tosa houses.
Basic Information
| Name | Nomura Family Residence Main House |
|---|---|
| Location | Otsu 2578, Nahari Town, Aki District, Kochi Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Building) |
| Year Designated | Registered October 18, 2000 |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Wooden, single-storey, tiled roof, building area 101 square meters |
| Owner | Unknown (owner field blank in the Agency for Cultural Affairs database) |
| Public Access | No interior opening announced (exterior from the road) |
References
- Cultural Heritage Database: Nomura Family Residence Main House (Agency for Cultural Affairs)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/101/00001981
- Cultural Heritage Online: Nomura Family Residence Main House
- https://online.bunka.go.jp/heritages/detail/139251
- Cultural Heritage Database: Nomura Family Residence East Stone Wall (Agency for Cultural Affairs)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/101/00001982
- Registered Tangible Cultural Properties (Buildings), towns and villages (Kochi Prefecture)
- https://www.pref.kochi.lg.jp/doc/2024031100049/
Last verified: 2026.10.16
