A Three-Storey Storehouse of Timber and Brick
The Sakuta House Storehouse (作田家住宅蔵, Sakutake Jūtaku Kura, also written Sakuta-ke Jūtaku Kura) is a three-storey warehouse of 1921 at 2-5-6 Honmachi in central Yatsushiro, Kumamoto Prefecture, registered as a national Tangible Cultural Property on 24 June 2021. Its 61 square metres of ground area carry a structure of timber framing combined with brick, under a gabled roof of sangawara pantiles.
Three storeys is a lot for a Japanese storehouse. Most kura stop at two, and the extra level pushes this one well above the shopfronts on either side, which is why the Agency for Cultural Affairs singles out how the building catches the eye from the street.
How It Is Built
The construction changes as it rises, and the change is the point.
On the ground floor, brick is laid around the outside of a timber post-and-beam frame and left exposed. Red brick facing the street of a Kyushu market town in 1921 announced modernity plainly enough.
From the second floor up the method shifts to mokkotsu rengazō, timber-framed brick, in which brick infills a wooden skeleton rather than carrying the load alone. That masonry is then coated in lath and mortar and finished to resemble dozō-zukuri, the thick plastered walling of a conventional Japanese storehouse. The building therefore shows its brick at eye level and disguises it above.
Timber-framed brick had a specific appeal in Japan. Brick alone had proved fragile in the Nōbi earthquake of 1891 and would be discredited further by the Great Kantō Earthquake of 1923, while a wooden frame gave the wall something to hold onto. Builders in provincial towns used the hybrid for godowns and workshops through the Taishō period, and comparatively few survive.
The Agency for Cultural Affairs registered the building under the criterion covering structures that would not easily be reproduced, registry number 43-0182, in the ninety-ninth round of registrations. That criterion is the one reserved for unusual technique rather than for scenic contribution, and it is a different criterion from the one applied the same day to the Sakuta House Main Building next door.
A Storehouse Still Earning Its Keep
Each floor was originally a single undivided room, as a storehouse would be. That plan has since been subdivided: the ground floor was fitted out as a restaurant, and the upper floors continue in storage and related use. Repairs are recorded around 1977 and again in 1994.
Yatsushiro City cites the restaurant tenancy as an example of a cultural property put to work rather than mothballed. This matters for visitors, because it has meant that the ground-floor interior, with its exposed structure, could be experienced by anyone taking a seat, which is rarely true of a registered building in private hands.
Standing outside, the elevation to study is the front. Brick below, mortar above, a gable end rising past its neighbours, and no attempt to make the three levels look like one thing.
Visiting
The Storehouse is privately owned and there is no admission system, no opening hours as a cultural property, and no ticket. Access to the ground floor has historically depended on the restaurant occupying it; the upper floors are not open. The exterior can be seen from the public street at any time, and street-level photography is unrestricted.
The site is roughly 2 kilometres from JR Yatsushiro Station, about 25 to 30 minutes on foot or a few minutes by taxi. Shinkansen passengers change at Shin-Yatsushiro Station. The Sakuta House Main Building stands on the same plot immediately west, and Yatsushiro Castle Ruins are about a kilometre to the north.
Current conditions need checking before any journey. The 2026 Kumamoto Earthquake of 28 July 2026 brought shaking of upper 6 to Yatsushiro, and reporting in the following days described extensive damage to shops in the Honmachi arcade district along with the collapse of the worship hall at Yatsushiro Shrine and heavy damage to the Shōhinken garden villa. No public statement has been issued about the condition of the Sakuta House buildings or about the operating status of the restaurant. Contact Yatsushiro City for current information, and bear in mind that the neighbourhood is in recovery.
- 📍 Plan Your Visit to Kumamoto
- Find tours, activities & transport passes near Sakuta Family Residence Storehouse
- [ Kumamoto Castle & Mt. Aso Volcano Tours ]
Q&A
- What makes the Sakuta House Storehouse structurally unusual?
- It combines two systems in one building. The ground floor shows brick laid around an exposed timber frame, while the second and third floors use timber-framed brick coated in lath and mortar to imitate a traditional plastered storehouse.
- Can I go inside the Sakuta House Storehouse?
- There is no visitor admission. The ground floor has housed a restaurant, so that level could be entered as a customer, but the upper floors are closed and the building is not run as a heritage attraction.
- When was the Sakuta House Storehouse built and registered?
- It dates from 1921, the tenth year of the Taishō era, and was registered as a national Tangible Cultural Property on 24 June 2021 under registry number 43-0182.
- How do I get to the Sakuta House Storehouse?
- It stands at 2-5-6 Honmachi, about 2 kilometres from JR Yatsushiro Station, a walk of 25 to 30 minutes. Travellers on the Kyushu Shinkansen transfer at Shin-Yatsushiro Station.
- Was the Sakuta House Storehouse damaged in the 2026 Kumamoto Earthquake?
- No official information had been published at the time of writing. The Honmachi district suffered serious damage on 28 July 2026, so check with Yatsushiro City before planning a visit.
Basic Information
| Name | Sakuta House Storehouse (作田家住宅蔵) |
|---|---|
| Location | 2-5-6 Honmachi, Yatsushiro, Kumamoto Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Structure), registry no. 43-0182 |
| Year Designated | 24 June 2021 (Reiwa 3) |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Timber and timber-framed brick, three storeys, tiled roof; ground area 61 m² |
| Owner | Private (owner not published in the national database) |
| Public Access | No visitor admission; ground floor has housed a restaurant, upper floors closed |
References
- National Database of Designated Cultural Properties — Sakuta House Storehouse
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/101/00013902
- Cultural Heritage Online — Sakuta House Storehouse
- https://bunka.nii.ac.jp/heritages/detail/591600
- Yatsushiro City — Sakuta House Main Building and Storehouse (National Registration)
- https://www.city.yatsushiro.lg.jp/kiji00324765/index.html
- Yatsushiro City — 2026 Kumamoto Earthquake information
- https://www.city.yatsushiro.lg.jp/kiji00326750/index.html
Last verified: 2026.08.08