About the Main House
The Former Nakamura Family Residence Main House (旧中村家住宅主屋, Kyū Nakamura-ke Jūtaku Omoya) is a late Edo-period farmhouse (1751 to 1830) in Amami, Kawachinagano City, Osaka Prefecture, registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on August 7, 2023. It is the central building of the estate of the Nakamura family, who served as village headmen in a valley near Kimi Pass. The national database records that the house was moved to this site in the Meiji 30s (1897 to 1906) and renovated in 1972.
It is a single-story timber building with a footprint of 147 square meters. The original thatch is still there, but it is now sealed under a temporary sheet-metal cover. Lean-to eaves run round three sides. Of the five registered buildings at the Former Nakamura Family Residence, the main house is the only one that goes back to the Edo period.
A Yamatomune Roof with a Lowered Ridge
The outline of the Nakamura main house comes from a roof type called Yamatomune. A steep thatched main roof is paired with an Ochimune, a lower ridge set over the earthen-floored work area (Doma). The step in the roofline marks the division inside: raised living rooms under the high roof, work space under the low one.
Because the thatch is covered in metal, you cannot see its texture from outside. The profile has not changed, though. From the courtyard, look at the front of the house and you can follow the high main roof dropping to the lower ridge on its east side.
A Big Doma and a Four-Room Plan
The raised part of the house is a regular Yomadori, four rooms arranged in a square. Osaka Bunkazai Navi gives their names as Nakanoma and Okunoma at the front and Oue and Nando at the back. The doma, counting the section under the lowered ridge, takes up about half the floor area, a measure of how much of daily life here was farm work and cooking.
The formal room with an alcove (Tokonoma) is only six tatami mats, which the Agency for Cultural Affairs calls rather small. The same agency describes the west zashiki wing, two eight-mat rooms joined to the west end in the Meiji 30s, as a supplement to this main-house reception room.
Why It Was Registered
The Former Nakamura Family Residence Main House was registered as a building that has become a model of its type. What the national description highlights is how many old Kawachi farmhouse features survive. It names two in particular: stopped grooves (tsukidome-mizo), where the tracks for sliding doors are cut short instead of running the full length of the timber, and a smoke-stop beam (kemurigaeshi) hung low. The beam keeps smoke from the doma fires out of the living rooms, and its low position is a sign of an older form.
Stand in the doma and look toward the living rooms to see how low that beam sits. Then look back from one of the front rooms: the difference in floor level and the line of the beam together show exactly where living space ended and work space began.
Seeing the Main House
The Nakamura main house is now seating for the Sansen Sozen Kyuemon cafe, so you can go inside as a customer during opening hours. Osaka Bunkazai Navi shows a boarded-floor room of the main house in use as the cafe space.
The yamatomune roof and lowered ridge are best seen from the courtyard just inside the gate row house. There is no official guidance on photography inside; be considerate of other guests and check with staff before photographing the rooms. Directions and opening days are on the Former Nakamura Family Residence page.
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Q&A
- Can you go inside the Former Nakamura Family Residence Main House?
- Yes, as a cafe customer. The house is used as seating for Sansen Sozen Kyuemon, so you can enter during opening hours. If you only want to look at the building, call the cafe first.
- How old is the Former Nakamura Family Residence Main House?
- The national database dates it to the late Edo period (1751 to 1830). It was moved to its present site in the Meiji 30s (1897 to 1906) and renovated in 1972.
- What kind of roof does the Former Nakamura Family Residence Main House have?
- A yamatomune roof: a steep thatched main roof with a lower ridge (ochimune) over the earthen-floored work area. The thatch is currently covered with a temporary sheet-metal roof.
- What is special about the floor plan of the Former Nakamura Family Residence Main House?
- The living area is a regular four-room plan, and the earthen-floored work area, including the part under the lower ridge, takes up about half the house. The formal room with an alcove is only six tatami mats.
- When was the Former Nakamura Family Residence Main House registered as a cultural property?
- It was registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on August 7, 2023, together with the west zashiki wing, the study and connecting corridor, the storehouse and the gate row house. Its registration number is 27-0888.
Basic Information
| Name | Former Nakamura Family Residence Main House (旧中村家住宅主屋) |
|---|---|
| Location | 346 Amami, Kawachinagano City, Osaka Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Structure) |
| Year Designated | 2023 (registered) |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Building area 147 square meters (single-story timber, thatch under temporary sheet-metal roofing) |
| Owner | Private individual |
| Public Access | Operates as a cafe (partly open) |
References
- Agency for Cultural Affairs, Database of National Cultural Properties: Former Nakamura Family Residence Main House
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00014644
- Cultural Heritage Online: Former Nakamura Family Residence Main House
- https://online.bunka.go.jp/heritages/detail/590416
- Kawachinagano City: Former Nakamura Family Residence Main House (in Japanese)
- https://www.city.kawachinagano.lg.jp/site/history/89160.html
- Osaka Bunkazai Navi: Sansen Sozen Kyuemon (Former Nakamura Family Residence)
- https://osaka-bunkazainavi.org/bunkazai/%E5%B1%B1%E5%B7%9D%E8%8D%89%E8%86%B3-%E4%B9%85%E5%8F%B3%E8%A1%9B%E9%96%80%EF%BC%88%E6%97%A7%E4%B8%AD%E6%9D%91%E5%AE%B6%E4%BD%8F%E5%AE%85%EF%BC%89
Last verified: 2026.09.29
