A Candy Maker's Townhouse of 1875
The Takahashi Ameya Main House (髙橋あめや主屋, Takahashi Ameya shuoku) is a townhouse built in 1875 facing the old Hokkoku Kaido road in Minami-honcho, Joetsu City, Niigata Prefecture, and was registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property (structure) on November 8, 2004 (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
The Agency for Cultural Affairs records a two-storey timber building with a sheet-iron roof and a building area of 109 square metres; registration number 15-0172.
Candy Makers to the Takada Domain
According to Joetsu City, the shop in the Takahashi Ameya Main House, Takahashi Magozaemon Shoten, was founded in 1624 and made candy for the Takada domain; its main house is a Registered Tangible Cultural Property.
The city guide adds that the writer Jippensha Ikku, famous for the comic travel novel Tokaidochu Hizakurige, visited the shop, and in his travel book Shokoku Dochu Kane no Waraji described its bustle and praised its millet syrup candy as refined in flavour and the specialty of the place.
Why It Was Registered
The Takahashi Ameya Main House was registered as a structure that has become a model of design. The Agency for Cultural Affairs values it as a townhouse that preserves well the street front of a merchant house in snow country.
What to Look For
It is a gabled townhouse entered from the long side (hirairi), with a gangi, a covered snow arcade, along the front, above which the lattice windows of the upper floor show (Agency for Cultural Affairs). Gangi are the projecting eaves that keep a walkway open along the street in snowy towns.
On the ground floor the earth-floored shop faces the street, with an office behind; upstairs, two formal rooms face the street (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
Visiting
The Takahashi Ameya Main House is still used as the Takahashi Magozaemon Shoten shop (Joetsu City). Check opening hours and closing days with the shop before visiting.
The shop address is 3-7-2 Minami-honcho, Joetsu City, telephone 025-524-1188 (Joetsu City). The Agency for Cultural Affairs gives the address as 3-81 Minami-honcho.
Q&A
- When was the Takahashi Ameya Main House built?
- In 1875 (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
- What is Takahashi Ameya?
- Takahashi Magozaemon Shoten, a candy maker founded in 1624 that supplied the Takada domain (Joetsu City).
- What are the building's features?
- A gabled townhouse on the Hokkoku Kaido with a gangi snow arcade in front and lattice windows above (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
- Can I visit it?
- It is still a shop; check opening hours before visiting (Joetsu City).
- When was the house registered?
- On November 8, 2004.
Basic Information
| Name | Takahashi Ameya Main House (髙橋あめや主屋) |
|---|---|
| Location | 3-81 Minami-honcho, Joetsu City, Niigata Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Structure) |
| Year Designated | Registered 2004/11/08 (Heisei 16) |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Timber, two storeys, sheet-iron roof, building area 109 square metres |
| Owner | Not recorded |
| Public Access | In use as a shop (check opening hours) |
References
- Takahashi Ameya Main House (Database of National Cultural Properties, Agency for Cultural Affairs)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/101/00004341
- Minami-honcho area (Takada castle town guide, Joetsu City, Japanese)
- https://www.city.joetsu.niigata.jp/uploaded/attachment/265074.pdf
Last verified: 2026.10.14