A Snow-Country Storehouse of Heavy Timber
The Shuseian (Former Mitsuboshiya) Storehouse (習静菴（旧三星屋）土蔵) is a storehouse of the early Meiji period in Tokimizu, Ojiya City, Niigata Prefecture, and was registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property (structure) on October 31, 2022 (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
The Agency records a two-storey timber building with a sheet-iron roof and a building area of 30 square metres, moved in 2007; registration number 15-0568.
Heavy Timbers against the Snow
The storehouse stood at a family house in the Chiyagawa area of the city (Agency for Cultural Affairs): a two-storey store under a gabled roof, entered from the long side, plastered up to the band below the eaves with boarding at the base and windows in the gables.
Both floors are now boarded, but the ground floor was first an earthen floor (Agency for Cultural Affairs). A stout central post carries the main beam, with rising rafters above.
Why It Was Registered
The Agency notes the heavy timbers throughout, made to bear the weight of snow, and registered it as a model of design.
What to Look For
Look for the stout central post, the main beam and the rising rafters (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
Visiting
It is owned by Ojiya City (Agency for Cultural Affairs). The tea house and storehouse are introduced together on the Shuseian page. No official information on public access was found.
Q&A
- When was it built?
- In the early Meiji period; moved in 2007 (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
- Where did it come from?
- From a family house in the Chiyagawa area of Ojiya.
- What suits it to snow country?
- Its heavy timbers, built to carry snow.
- How is it framed?
- A stout central post carries the main beam, with rising rafters.
- When was the Shuseian (Former Mitsuboshiya) Storehouse registered?
- On October 31, 2022 (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
Basic Information
| Name | Shuseian (Former Mitsuboshiya) Storehouse (習静菴（旧三星屋）土蔵) |
|---|---|
| Location | 1410-1 Tokimizu, Ojiya City, Niigata Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Structure) |
| Year Designated | Registered 2022/10/31 (Reiwa 4) |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Two-storey timber, sheet-iron roof, 30 m² |
| Owner | Ojiya City |
| Public Access | No official information on access |
References
- Shuseian (Former Mitsuboshiya) Storehouse (Database of National Cultural Properties, Agency for Cultural Affairs)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/101/00014345
Last verified: 2026.10.21
