The Storehouse beside the Earth-Floored Passage
The Kunimi Furusato Exhibition Hall Exhibition Room (Former Arinaga Residence Storehouse) (国見ふるさと展示館展示場（旧有永邸蔵）) is the storehouse of a village headman's estate of the early Meiji era in Kibe, Kunimi-machi, Kunisaki City, Oita Prefecture, and was registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property (structure) on December 4, 2000 (Agency for Cultural Affairs). It is also referred to as the Former Arinaga Residence Storehouse (旧有永邸蔵, Kyū Arinaga-tei Kura).
The Agency records a 2-storey timber building with a tiled roof and a building area of 150 square metres, registered as contributing to the historic landscape of the country; registration number 44-0048.
According to the Agency, it stands at the service end of the main house, east of its earth-floored passage, on a low stone retaining wall built along the edge of the plot. As part of the Kunimi Furusato Exhibition Hall it now holds a collection store on the ground floor and an exhibition room upstairs.
A Hipped Storehouse with a Room Upstairs
The Kunimi Furusato Exhibition Hall Exhibition Room (Former Arinaga Residence Storehouse) is a 2-storey timber building under a hipped roof (Yosemune-zukuri) of interlocking pantiles (Sangawara-buki), its ridge running north to south (Agency for Cultural Affairs). Like the main house, it dates from the early Meiji era.
The upper floor is the puzzle. Judging from the openings in the east wall, the Agency suggests it was originally a living room. If so, the building combined a store below with a room for people above.
It rests on a low stone retaining wall built along the edge of the plot, a step east of the main house's earth-floored passage.
Why It Was Registered
The Agency registered the Kunimi Furusato Exhibition Hall Exhibition Room (Former Arinaga Residence Storehouse) as a building that contributes to the historic landscape of the country. Its place right beside the main house's working passage suggests a store tied closely to the daily life of the household.
Of the 4 registered Arinaga buildings, only the storehouse is described with signs that its upper floor once served as a living room (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
What to Look For
Outside, look at the stone retaining wall under the Kunimi Furusato Exhibition Hall Exhibition Room (Former Arinaga Residence Storehouse) and at the openings in the east wall that the Agency reads as evidence of an upstairs room.
From the main house's earth-floored passage, glance east to see how close the store was kept to the house.
Visiting
The Kunimi Furusato Exhibition Hall Exhibition Room (Former Arinaga Residence Storehouse) serves as an exhibition room of the Kunimi Furusato Exhibition Hall (Agency for Cultural Affairs). The ground floor is a store; no official notice describes the current displays upstairs, how much of the building is open, or whether photography is allowed.
Opening days, admission and directions for the hall as a whole are given on the overview page for the Kunimi Furusato Exhibition Hall (Former Arinaga Residence).
Q&A
- When was the Kunimi Furusato Exhibition Hall Exhibition Room (Former Arinaga Residence Storehouse) built?
- In the early Meiji era, the same period as the main house (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
- What is the Kunimi Furusato Exhibition Hall Exhibition Room (Former Arinaga Residence Storehouse) used for today?
- It is an exhibition space of the Kunimi Furusato Exhibition Hall, with a store on the ground floor and an exhibition room upstairs (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
- What was the upper floor of the Kunimi Furusato Exhibition Hall Exhibition Room (Former Arinaga Residence Storehouse) originally?
- Judging from the openings in the east wall, it is thought to have been a living room (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
- How is the Kunimi Furusato Exhibition Hall Exhibition Room (Former Arinaga Residence Storehouse) built?
- It is a 2-storey timber building with a hipped pantile roof and a building area of 150 square metres, set on a low stone retaining wall (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
- When was the Kunimi Furusato Exhibition Hall Exhibition Room (Former Arinaga Residence Storehouse) registered?
- On December 4, 2000 (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
Basic Information
| Name | Kunimi Furusato Exhibition Hall Exhibition Room (Former Arinaga Residence Storehouse) (国見ふるさと展示館展示場（旧有永邸蔵）) |
|---|---|
| Location | 536 Kibe, Kunimi-machi, Kunisaki City, Oita Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Structure) |
| Year Designated | Registered December 4, 2000 |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | 2-storey timber building, tiled roof, building area 150 square metres |
| Owner | Kunisaki City |
| Public Access | Exhibition room of the Kunimi Furusato Exhibition Hall (ground floor is a store); extent of public access unconfirmed |
References
- Kunimi Furusato Exhibition Hall Exhibition Room (Former Arinaga Residence Storehouse) (Database of National Cultural Properties, Agency for Cultural Affairs)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00002105
- Kunimi Furusato Exhibition Hall (Kunisaki City, Cultural Properties Division, Japanese)
- https://www.city.kunisaki.oita.jp/soshiki/bunkazai/furusatotenjikan.html
- Kunimi Furusato Exhibition Hall (Oita Prefecture digital archive, from the January 1998 prefectural bulletin, Japanese)
- https://www.pref.oita.jp/site/archive/201787.html
Last verified: 2026.11.13
