Kawai Genshichiro Family Residence Inner Storehouse

What Is the Kawai Genshichiro Family Residence Inner Storehouse?

The Kawai Genshichiro Family Residence Inner Storehouse (河合源七郎家住宅内蔵, Kawai Genshichirō-ke Jūtaku Uchigura) is a mid-Meiji 2-storey Dozo-zukuri fireproof storehouse in Kitayagi-cho, Kashihara City, Nara Prefecture, registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on November 2, 2009. Nara Prefecture dates it to the late 1890s. It stands in the northwest corner of the estate and pushes out toward the street, ahead of the main house.

It is a compact building, 5.6 meters by 3.9 meters with a building area of 22 square meters, under a Kirizuma-zukuri gabled roof laid in Hongawarabuki tiling. The prefecture also calls it the inuigura, using the old compass name for northwest.

Why It Was Registered

The Kawai Genshichiro inner storehouse was registered as a structure that contributes to the historic landscape of the country. The Agency for Cultural Affairs notes that, together with the main house, it shapes the historic streetscape of the Shimotsumichi, a major road since ancient times.

Its position does most of the work. Rather than lining up with the main house, the storehouse steps forward from the corner of the plot. Walking north along the road, you see its white gable rise beyond the eaves of the main house like a wall, marking the end of the estate. The Kashihara tourism association likewise names the storehouse gable and the guest entrance as the features that give the frontage its varied profile.

The name means inner storehouse, yet it sits on the street side. It pairs with the outer storehouse in the far southeast corner, so the estate has one storehouse at each end of a diagonal.

What to Look For

A Different Base on Each Side

The walls are finished in white Shikkui plaster, but the lower band changes from face to face. On the south and north sides it is Namako-kabe, flat tiles set in raised plaster joints. On the west face toward the road, Nara Prefecture records a granite plinth with vertical boarding above it. Only the side closest to passers-by is armored in stone and timber.

A Heavy Tiled Gable

The roof uses alternating round and flat tiles, heavier and thicker in line than the pan tiles of the main house. Looking up from the Shimotsumichi, you can see the row of round tile ends crowning the triangular gable, a different texture from the eaves of the house beside it.

How to Visit

The Kawai Genshichiro Family Residence Inner Storehouse is privately owned and its interior is not open to the public (checked September 27, 2026).

The west gable faces the Shimotsumichi and can be seen from the public road. Because it projects ahead of the main house, it looms into view as you walk north. The granite base and board panelling are easy to make out from across the road without going up to the wall. The tiled south face is only partly visible beside the guest entrance.