A Stone Workshop for Kiso Lacquerware
The Maruyama Lacquerware Shop Oya Stone Warehouse (丸山漆器店大谷石蔵) is a three-storey stone storehouse built in 1961 at Narai, Shiojiri City, Nagano Prefecture, which in 2013 was registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property.
The Agency for Cultural Affairs records a tiled roof and a building area of 33 square metres, registered for its contribution to the historic landscape; Shiojiri City lists a private owner.
Shiojiri City notes that it stands almost at the northern edge of the Narai preservation district.
Structure
According to the Agency, it stands north of Narai Station, a three-storey gable-entry building of Oya stone with a pantiled roof, drip mouldings at each floor, a pediment on the gable and stone-hooded windows on the second and third floors.
Shiojiri City describes it as 5.8 metres square with a single room on each floor, intended for polishing lacquerware on the ground floor, undercoating on the first and top-coating on the second.
What to Look For
Shiojiri City explains that Kiso lacquerware peddlers travelling Japan in the decades after the Second World War saw Oya stone buildings near Utsunomiya and adopted them as lacquer workshops, attracted by the short building time. In practice dust, condensation and temperature control proved troublesome, and no more were built.
The Agency values it as a carefully built stone storehouse of distinctive appearance that conveys the traditional lacquerware industry.
Visiting the Maruyama Lacquerware Shop Oya Stone Warehouse
It is privately owned, and no official information on interior access could be found. The exterior can be seen from nearby roads.
Enquiries: Shiojiri City cultural properties section, 0263-52-0904.
Q&A
- When was the storehouse built?
- In 1961.
- What was it for?
- A lacquer workshop, with polishing, undercoating and top-coating on successive floors.
- Why Oya stone?
- Kiso lacquer peddlers saw Oya stone buildings near Utsunomiya and liked the short building time.
- Did such workshops catch on?
- No; dust and condensation made them impractical.
- What are its exterior features?
- Drip mouldings, a pediment and stone-hooded windows.
Basic Information
| Name | Maruyama Lacquerware Shop Oya Stone Warehouse (丸山漆器店大谷石蔵) |
|---|---|
| Location | 1096-1 Jo, Narai, Shiojiri City, Nagano Prefecture, and other lots |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (building) |
| Year Designated | Registered 2013/12/24 (Heisei 25) |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Three-storey stone, tiled roof, building area 33 square metres |
| Owner | Private owner |
| Public Access | Exterior visible from nearby roads |
References
- Agency for Cultural Affairs Database: Maruyama Lacquerware Shop Oya Stone Warehouse (Japanese)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00009754
- Cultural Heritage Online: Maruyama Lacquerware Shop Oya Stone Warehouse (Japanese)
- https://online.bunka.go.jp/heritages/detail/274503
- Shiojiri City: Maruyama Lacquerware Shop Oya Stone Warehouse (Japanese)
- https://www.city.shiojiri.lg.jp/site/bunkazaihouhou/29602.html
Last verified: 2026.09.29