Former Nakayama Family Residence Middle Storehouse

Former Nakayama Family Residence Middle Storehouse

The Former Nakayama Family Residence Middle Storehouse (旧中山家住宅中蔵, Kyū Nakayama-ke Jūtaku Nakagura) is a two-story earthen-walled storehouse at the rear of businessman Nakayama Setsutarō's estate in Tsurajima-chō Nishinoura, Kurashiki City, Okayama Prefecture, built around 1914 and registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on November 2, 2018.

It stands just north of the detached house and inner storehouse, raised on a tall base of fitted stone, with its ridge running east to west. It is a Dozo-zukuri building, meaning its timber frame is buried in thick layers of clay and plaster for fire protection, roofed with a gable of interlocking round and flat tiles. Its building area is 60 square meters, a little smaller than the rice storehouse next door.

The estate has three storehouses in a line running south to north: the inner storehouse, this one, and the rice storehouse. No record explains the name nakagura, literally middle storehouse, but it does stand in the middle of that line.

Why the Middle Storehouse Was Registered

The Former Nakayama Family Residence Middle Storehouse was registered for its contribution to the historic landscape. The Agency for Cultural Affairs notes that, with the rice storehouse to its north, it gives the estate its solid, imposing character.

The main house and the guest pavilion are all white walls and sliding screens. Behind them, on a higher base, the two black storehouses close off the back of the estate like a wall, and the middle storehouse forms one half of that backdrop.

It went up around the same time as the main house, when most of the estate's buildings were completed.

What to Look For: Black Plaster and Namako-kabe

The walls are coated in black Shikkui plaster. Namako-kabe, a grid of flat tiles set with raised white plaster joints, covers the lower part of each floor and also runs up all four corners, so the outline of the black box is traced in white. Cladding the corners this way also protects the edges most prone to knocks and weather.

Partway up the walls runs a band of tiles set as a drip course. It throws rainwater clear of the plaster below and, to the eye, draws a crisp horizontal line across the dark surface. The preservation society notes that timber boarding is also used on the south and north walls.

The roof of the Former Nakayama Family Residence Middle Storehouse is laid in the heavier hongawara style, with alternating round and flat tiles. Compare it with the lighter pantiles on the inner storehouse and you can see that not every storehouse on the estate was given the same rank of roof.

The door sits toward the north end of the east gable wall under a small canopy. Because the floor is set high, a flight of stone steps, 10 to 12 in all, climbs to the threshold.

Visiting the Middle Storehouse

The exterior of the Former Nakayama Family Residence Middle Storehouse can be seen on the estate's opening days. Interior access varies with the season and with events, so ask at the entrance if you hope to look inside.

From the east you can take in the gable end, the canopied door and the steps in one view. Step back and include the rice storehouse to the north to see the same design repeated at a slightly larger size.

Take care on the steps up to the door. There is no published policy on photography, so follow the guidance given on site. How to reach the estate and what it costs to enter are explained on the Former Nakayama Family Residence page.