What Is the Hojo Family Residence Household Goods Storehouse?
The Hojo Family Residence Household Goods Storehouse (北條家住宅家財蔵, Hōjō-ke Jūtaku Kazaigura) is a late-Meiji, 2-storey earthen-walled Dozo-zukuri storehouse on the Hojo family estate in Izumi, Sado City, Niigata Prefecture, and it was registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on 18 October 2006 under number 15-0225.
A kazaigura is where a household kept its movable property: furniture, utensils and other valuables. This one stands just north of the rice storehouse and faces south. With a building area of 35 square meters, it is one of the smaller buildings on the estate.
The Link Between Two Storehouses
On its south side the Hojo Family Residence Household Goods Storehouse has a covered front bay, or Kuramae, 1 ken deep (a Ken is the traditional unit of building length). That bay joins the rice storehouse and the miso storehouse, so that the storehouses read as one connected group. This is the quality the Agency for Cultural Affairs highlights, and the building was registered for its contribution to the historic landscape.
On its own it would be easy to overlook. Its value lies in its position: it is the joint in the line of buildings that runs from the main house through the miso storehouse to the rice storehouse. Take it away, and the northwest corner of the estate falls into two separate pieces.
Plaster Behind Boards
The Hojo Family Residence Household Goods Storehouse is 2.5 ken long and 2 ken deep, under a Kirizuma-zukuri gabled roof of Sangawara-buki pantiles. The walls are finished in Shikkui lime plaster, and on every side except the south that plaster is covered with Shitami-itabari clapboarding held in place by thin vertical battens, a common way of shielding plaster walls from rain and snow.
The south face, the only one left unboarded, is where the bay is attached, so the white plaster shows only inside the bay.
The national database dates the building to the late Meiji period. Sado City notes that no traces of hand-forged nails (wakugi) were found and the timber is relatively new, and places it in the late Meiji period or later. That makes the Hojo Family Residence Household Goods Storehouse a generation younger than the rice and miso storehouses, where such nails were used.
Visiting the Hojo Family Residence Household Goods Storehouse
The Hojo Family Residence Household Goods Storehouse stands deep inside the grounds, between the rice and miso storehouses, and its interior is not open. From mid-September 2026 Sado City has asked visitors not to enter the grounds while work is carried out on the main house, so it cannot be seen up close during that time.
If the chance to visit comes, look for the three boarded walls and the way the south bay carries on into the storehouses on either side.
Q&A
- When was the Hojo Family Residence Household Goods Storehouse built?
- The national database says the late Meiji period. Sado City, noting the lack of hand-forged nails and the relatively new timber, places it in the late Meiji period or later.
- What was the Hojo Family Residence Household Goods Storehouse used for?
- Storing the household's movable property, such as furniture and utensils. It stands between the rice and miso storehouses and links them through its south bay.
- What are the walls of the Hojo Family Residence Household Goods Storehouse like?
- Lime plaster, covered on every side except the south with clapboarding held by vertical battens to protect it from the weather.
- When was the Hojo Family Residence Household Goods Storehouse registered as a cultural property?
- On 18 October 2006, as Registered Tangible Cultural Property number 15-0225, for its contribution to the historic landscape.
- Can I visit the Hojo Family Residence Household Goods Storehouse?
- The interior is not open, and since mid-September 2026 Sado City has asked visitors not to enter the grounds while work is carried out on the main house.
Basic Information
| Name | Hojo Family Residence Household Goods Storehouse (北條家住宅家財蔵) |
|---|---|
| Location | 33 Izumi Otsu, Sado City, Niigata Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Structure), No. 15-0225 |
| Year Designated | Registered 18 October 2006 |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | 2-storey earthen-walled storehouse, tiled roof, building area 35 square meters |
| Owner | Private |
| Public Access | Not open (visitors are asked not to enter the grounds during work on the main house) |
References
- Database of National Cultural Properties: Hojo Family Residence Household Goods Storehouse (Agency for Cultural Affairs, in Japanese)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/101/00005827
- Cultural Heritage Online: Hojo Family Residence Household Goods Storehouse (Agency for Cultural Affairs, in Japanese)
- https://online.bunka.go.jp/heritages/detail/185733
- Registered Tangible Cultural Properties: Hojo Family Residence (Sado City, in Japanese)
- https://www.city.sado.niigata.jp/site/bunkazai/4963.html
- Important Cultural Property: Hojo Family Residence (Sado City, in Japanese)
- https://www.city.sado.niigata.jp/site/bunkazai/4924.html
Last verified: 2026.09.28
