Hatakoshi Family Residence Miso Storehouse

What the Hatakoshi Family Residence Miso Storehouse Is

The Hatakoshi Family Residence Miso Storehouse (波多腰家住宅味噌蔵, Hatakoshi-ke Jūtaku Misogura) is a small storehouse built in 1890 in the Hata district of Matsumoto City, Nagano Prefecture, and entered on the national register as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on 28 April 2000 under the number 20-0038.

It stands against the west end of the rice storehouse. The plan is 2 by 2 and a half ken, with a building area of 17 square metres, a single storey with a mezzanine loft inside. The ridge runs east to west and the door opens in the east gable.

According to Matsumoto City, an ink inscription on the ridge-support timber records its building on an auspicious day in March 1890. That is 11 years after the rice storehouse, and it shows the row of storehouses growing westward.

Holding the Corner

The Hatakoshi Family Residence Miso Storehouse was registered for its contribution to the historic landscape. The Agency for Cultural Affairs explains why: it stands on the corner of the storehouse row, where it matters to the look of the whole compound.

The row runs, from west to east, miso storehouse, rice storehouse, barn and storehouse. The miso storehouse is the western end of that line, and it meets the ash house, just inside the front gate, at a right angle. It is small, but it closes both the row and the west corner of the compound.

The walls are of the thick plastered type that buries the posts, now partly clad in weatherboarding. The roof has been renewed in recent years, but the okiyane form, a roof set on top of the earthen body, has been kept. Repair that keeps the shape is part of what makes the building worth listing.

What to Look For

The interest here lies in the contrast with its neighbour. The rice storehouse is 7 ken long and 2 storeys high; the miso storehouse is 2 ken wide with a loft tucked under its roof. Side by side, the two show how different stores called for different sizes.

On the walls, notice the split between white earthen plaster and dark boarding. The boards were added to protect the most weather-exposed surfaces, a visible record of upkeep.

Note also how it meets the ash house at a right angle. Where the two buildings join, they enclose a corner on the west side of the compound in an L.

Visiting the Hatakoshi Family Residence Miso Storehouse

The miso storehouse is part of a private home and the interior is not open. It stands toward the west side of the compound at the end of the storehouse row. Stay off the property and look only from outside it.

Directions and viewing conditions for the whole compound are on the Hatakoshi Family Residence page.