What the Pawn Storehouse Is
The Hoashi Family Branch Residence (Shoseki Furokan) Pawn Storehouse (帆足家分家住宅（松石不老館）質蔵, shichigura) is a mid-Meiji storehouse in Hetsugi Honmachi, Nakahetsugi, Oita City, listed as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on 10 November 2005. It stands on the northern boundary, north of the main house, occupying a corner of the garden there. The plastered Dozo-zukuri storehouse is 5 by 2 and a half bays and 2 stories high under a Kirizuma-zukuri roof of pantiles, with a building area of 41 square metres.
It sits on cut stone. The south front has a base of Namako-kabe, a sliding door with a small roof above it, and stone steps up to the threshold. The registration includes a gate and wall: a tile-capped board fence and gate run from the storehouse's southwest corner.
A shichigura was where a pawnbroker kept pledged goods. No public source consulted for this article says what the branch family's trade was, but the name of this storehouse points toward pawnbroking.
Why It Was Listed
The Hoashi Family Branch Residence Pawn Storehouse was registered for its contribution to the historic landscape.
A pawn storehouse held other people's property, so it had to resist both fire and theft, a harder standard than most merchant storehouses faced. A cut-stone base, a tiled lower wall and thick earthen walls under plaster meet that standard.
The setting matters as well. Set in a corner of the garden and fenced off with its own gate, the storehouse was reached only by a controlled route. Of the eleven listed structures, only this storehouse and the reception wing were registered together with a gate and wall.
What to Look For
The front faces south. Namako-kabe is made by fixing flat tiles to the wall and building up the joints in raised white plaster to form a lattice; it shields the lower wall from rain and fire. The black and white grid gives the front of the Hoashi Family Branch Residence Pawn Storehouse its crisp lower half.
Look too at the little roof over the door and the steps below it. The roof keeps rain off the entrance; the steps climb to a floor lifted on the stone base, away from ground damp.
The tool storehouse on the same property has the same front: tiled base, sliding door, small roof and steps. Two storehouses built to one pattern suggest this was the household's standard for a storehouse front.
Visiting
The Hoashi Family Branch Residence (Shoseki Furokan) Pawn Storehouse is not open to the public (checked 25 September 2026). It stands in the garden north of the main house, largely hidden from the eastern street by the main house and wall.
The street wall has a garden gate, but the garden behind it is private. Do not open the gate or look over the wall.
Directions to the site as a whole are on the Hoashi Family Branch Residence page.
- 📍 Plan Your Visit to Oita
- Find tours, activities & transport passes near Hoashi Family Branch Residence (Shoseki Furokan) Pawn Storehouse
- [ Beppu Hell Tour & Yufuin Onsen Hot Springs ]
Q&A
- What is the Hoashi Family Branch Residence Pawn Storehouse?
- A mid-Meiji 2-story plastered storehouse in the garden north of the main house, 5 by 2 and a half bays, with a building area of 41 square metres.
- What does shichigura mean at the Hoashi Family Branch Residence?
- A storehouse for goods taken in pawn. The name suggests the branch family was involved in pawnbroking.
- What does the front of the Hoashi Family Branch Residence Pawn Storehouse look like?
- The south front has a tiled namako-kabe base, a sliding door under a small roof and stone steps, all on a cut-stone base.
- What is included in the registration of the Hoashi Family Branch Residence Pawn Storehouse?
- The storehouse plus a tile-capped board fence and gate running from its southwest corner.
- Can you see the Hoashi Family Branch Residence (Shoseki Furokan) Pawn Storehouse?
- It is not open to the public and is largely hidden from the eastern street.
Basic Information
| Name | Hoashi Family Branch Residence (Shoseki Furokan) Pawn Storehouse (帆足家分家住宅（松石不老館）質蔵) |
|---|---|
| Location | 4363 Oaza Nakahetsugi, Oita City, Oita Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Structure), registration no. 44-0106 |
| Year Designated | Registered 2005/11/10 (Heisei 17) |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Dozo-zukuri storehouse, 2 stories, tiled roof, building area 41 square metres, with gate and wall; 5 by 2 and a half bays |
| Owner | Not listed in the ACA database |
| Public Access | Not open to the public; set deep in the plot and hard to see from the road |
References
- Agency for Cultural Affairs, Database of National Cultural Properties: 帆足家分家住宅（松石不老館）質蔵
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00005061
- Cultural Heritage Online: 帆足家分家住宅（松石不老館）質蔵
- https://bunka.nii.ac.jp/heritages/detail/142331
- Oita City: History and Culture of Hetsugi Honmachi (in Japanese)
- https://www.city.oita.oita.jp/o204/machizukuri/toshi/1014449890810.html
Last verified: 2026.09.25
