What Is the Former Tomita Family Residence Annex?
The Former Tomita Family Residence Annex (旧冨田家住宅離れ, Kyū Tomita-ke Jūtaku Hanare) is a 2-storey wooden reception wing built in the early Showa period (1926 to 1945) a little west of the center of the Tomita timber merchants' plot in Ōaza Sakurai, Sakurai City, Nara Prefecture, and it was registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on June 24, 2021. It has a hip-and-gable Irimoya-zukuri roof of Sangawara-buki tiles and a building area of 52 square meters.
Registered as number 29-0319 for contributing to the historic landscape of the country, the Annex was renovated in 2018. The Agency for Cultural Affairs calls it a fine example of modern Japanese-style architecture. Of the six registered buildings, the Annex is the only one with formal rooms on its upper floor.
Matching Rooms Stacked Two Floors High
The Former Tomita Family Residence Annex faces east. At its southeast corner a small entrance with its own hip-and-gable roof juts out, the place where visitors were received. Both floors share the same plan: a 6-mat room on the south and an 8-mat room on the north, opening into each other as a linked suite. The 8-mat room has a Tokonoma alcove, shelves and a built-in writing desk, and the 6-mat room serves as its anteroom.
What the Agency singles out is the height of the upper floor. Instead of keeping the 2nd storey low for storage or sleeping, as many houses did, the Tomita Annex gives it the same generous height and the same formal fittings as the ground floor. Two equal reception suites, one above the other, look designed so that guests could be entertained on either level.
Glass Doors onto the Inner Garden
The rooms of the Annex face an inner garden, and a veranda wraps around them, closed with glass doors rather than wooden shutters. Daylight and the garden come straight in, a brightness typical of reception rooms of the early Showa years.
The inn Kura no Yado Ōrintei names one of its units Shōfū and describes it as a hip-and-gable entrance hall leading to 6-mat and 8-mat rooms downstairs and the same pair upstairs, reached by a box staircase; from that description Shōfū appears to be the Former Tomita Family Residence Annex. According to the inn, the ground floor looks onto the garden through frosted-glass shoji along the veranda, and upstairs beds stand in front of the alcoves. Using the formal rooms as bedrooms while keeping their alcove fittings intact is one way the registered building has been adapted as lodging.
Visiting the Former Tomita Family Residence Annex
Because the Former Tomita Family Residence Annex is an inn unit, entry to the interior appears to be limited to overnight guests, and no arrangement for drop-in visits was found. The Annex stands in the middle of the plot, and whether it can be seen from the public road has not been confirmed.
If you stay, go upstairs and compare the ceiling height with the rooms below. The small hip-and-gable roof over the southeast entrance and the garden seen through the veranda glass are also worth noticing in the Tomita Annex.
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Q&A
- When was the Former Tomita Family Residence Annex built?
- It dates from the early Showa period (1926 to 1945), was renovated in 2018 and was registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on June 24, 2021.
- What is the layout of the Former Tomita Family Residence Annex?
- Each floor has a 6-mat room on the south and an 8-mat room with alcove, shelves and writing desk on the north, linked as a suite.
- Why is the Former Tomita Family Residence Annex valued?
- It is regarded as a fine example of modern Japanese-style architecture, with a tall upper floor and formal suites on both levels, and it was registered for contributing to the historic landscape.
- Which inn unit is the Former Tomita Family Residence Annex?
- From the room descriptions, it appears to be the unit called Shōfū at Kura no Yado Ōrintei.
- Can I visit the Former Tomita Family Residence Annex?
- It is used as an inn unit, so the interior appears to be open only to overnight guests. No information about drop-in visits was found.
Basic Information
| Name | Former Tomita Family Residence Annex |
|---|---|
| Location | 262-2 Sakurai, Sakurai City, Nara Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Building) |
| Year Designated | Registered June 24, 2021 |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | 2-storey wooden building, tiled roof, building area 52 sq m |
| Owner | Not listed in the Agency for Cultural Affairs database |
| Public Access | Guest unit of the inn Kura no Yado Ourintei; interior for overnight guests |
References
- Agency for Cultural Affairs, Database of National Cultural Properties: 旧冨田家住宅離れ
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00013865
- Cultural Heritage Online: 旧冨田家住宅離れ
- https://online.bunka.go.jp/heritages/detail/586743
- Agency for Cultural Affairs: List of properties recommended for registration, March 19, 2021 (PDF)
- https://www.bunka.go.jp/koho_hodo_oshirase/hodohappyo/pdf/92882201_03.pdf
- Kura no Yado Ourintei: Shofu
- https://sakurai-sakuramachi.com/ourintei/plan/shoufuu/
Last verified: 2026.10.02
