Kura no Kyodokan Sairi Yashiki Shop Storehouse: the oldest building on the lot
The Kura no Kyodokan Sairi Yashiki Shop Storehouse (蔵の郷土館齋理屋敷店蔵, misegura) in Marumori, Miyagi Prefecture, is a two-storey fireproof storehouse built in 1848 and registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on January 26, 2011.
This was the shopfront of the Saito merchant house. It faces east onto the north-south street that runs past the compound, and nothing else on the lot is older. Japanese merchants built shops like this in the dozo-zukuri manner, with thick clay walls wrapped around a timber frame, so that goods and customers sat inside a building that could ride out a town fire. The storehouse was renovated in 1988, the year the town opened the compound as a museum.
Why it was registered
The Agency for Cultural Affairs describes the Sairi Shop Storehouse as having the weighty presence you would expect of a wealthy merchant. It is a gabled building with a sheet-metal roof, 10 metres wide and 7.7 metres deep, covering 77 square metres. The walls are finished in white lime plaster, and the lower walls carry namako-kabe, square tiles set on the diagonal with their joints raised in plaster.
Two openings pierce the upper floor on the street side. Each holds a pair of doors finished in kakego-nuri, a plasterer's technique in which the edges of door and frame are built up in stepped ridges so that they lock together when shut and keep out sparks. With the Yomego no Kura next door and the Front Gate between them, the storehouse gave the Saitos a street front that no one in Marumori could miss.
What to look for
Cross the street first. From the opposite pavement you can take in the whole facade and see how deep those upper doors really are; when they stand open, the stepped plaster rebates stick out like the edges of a stacked box. Down at ground level, the diamond grid of namako-kabe is more than decoration. It shields the clay wall from rain splashing back off the road.
A 2019 town report listed the ground floor as the reception desk and shop and the upper floor as a Taisho-romance style cafe. The museum's website currently says the cafe is closed.
Seeing the Shop Storehouse
The exterior can be seen from the street without a ticket. Going inside requires admission to the Sairi Yashiki museum, and visits begin at the reception in this building. With the cafe closed, ask at the desk whether the upper floor is open. Watch for traffic if you step back to photograph the facade.
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Q&A
- When was the Kura no Kyodokan Sairi Yashiki Shop Storehouse built?
- In 1848, making it the oldest building at Sairi Yashiki. It was renovated in 1988 when the town opened the compound as a museum.
- Can you go inside the Sairi Yashiki Shop Storehouse?
- Yes, with admission to the museum. A 2019 town report listed the ground floor as reception and shop. The upper-floor cafe is closed for now, according to the official website.
- What should I notice on the Kura no Kyodokan Sairi Yashiki Shop Storehouse facade?
- The two upper-floor doors with stepped kakego-nuri plaster edges, a fire-sealing detail, and the diagonal namako-kabe tiling along the base of the walls.
- Where is the Kura no Kyodokan Sairi Yashiki Shop Storehouse within the compound?
- It faces east onto the north-south street in front of the house. The Front Gate and the Yomego no Kura follow to the south, forming the street front together.
- How big is the Sairi Yashiki Shop Storehouse?
- It is a 2-storey dozo-zukuri storehouse under a gabled sheet-metal roof, 10 metres wide and 7.7 metres deep, with a building area of 77 square metres.
Basic Information
| Name | Kura no Kyodokan Sairi Yashiki Shop Storehouse (蔵の郷土館齋理屋敷店蔵) |
|---|---|
| Location | 25 Machinishi, Marumori Town, Igu District, Miyagi Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Building) |
| Year Designated | Registered 2011/1/26 (Heisei 23) |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | 2-storey dozo-zukuri storehouse, sheet-metal roof, building area 77 square metres (10 metres wide, 7.7 metres deep) |
| Owner | Marumori Town |
| Public Access | Open to the public as the museum's entrance building (admission charged) |
References
- Kura no Kyodokan Sairi Yashiki Shop Storehouse (Agency for Cultural Affairs database, Japanese)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00008399
- About Sairi Yashiki (official website, Japanese)
- https://sairiyashiki.com/about/
- Overview of six Marumori tourism facilities including Sairi Yashiki (Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, 2019, Japanese)
- https://www.mlit.go.jp/common/001273141.pdf
Last verified: 2026.09.24
