What Is the Koyama Family Residence Main House?
The Koyama Family Residence Main House (兒山家住宅主屋, Koyama-ke Jūtaku Shuoku) is the principal dwelling of a wealthy farming family's estate in Tokikita, Naka Ward, Sakai City, Osaka Prefecture; it was built in the late Edo period and registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on 14 February 2002. It is a 2-storey timber building covering 254 square meters, the largest of the ten registered buildings on the estate.
It stands at the center of the lot facing south, with the reception wing attached to the east and the connecting wing and inner storehouse behind. Every other building on the estate is arranged around the Koyama Family Residence Main House.
An Earthen Floor and Six Rooms
The plan of the Koyama Family Residence Main House follows the standard farmhouse arrangement. The western half is a Doma, an earth-floored work area, and the eastern half holds the living quarters, laid out as six rooms in two rows of three.
The doma was where cooking and farm work went on; the raised rooms were for family life and for receiving visitors. The most formal guests were entertained next door, in the separate reception wing.
A Full Upper Floor in Disguise
Look up at the front of the Koyama Family Residence Main House and you will see Mushiko-mado, small slatted windows set in plaster. They are typical of houses with a Tsushi-nikai, a low attic storey used mainly for storage, and from the street the house appears to be one of these.
Inside, however, the roof is carried on Nobori-bari, sloping beams that lift the structure and give the upper floor full headroom. The builders kept the traditional face of the house while gaining usable space behind it.
The roof is in the Irimoya-zukuri hip-and-gable style, laid in Hongawarabuki tiles, with one hip-and-gable roof set over another. Sakai City singles out these stacked roofs and the smoke vent as the source of the house's solid, weighty presence. It was registered for its contribution to the historic landscape.
Visiting the Koyama Family Residence Main House
The Koyama Family Residence Main House is still a family home, and the interior is closed. None of the sources consulted mentions any occasion when the earthen floor, the six rooms or the sloping-beam roof frame are shown to the public.
Because the main house sits in the middle of the lot behind the gatehouse, what can be seen from the road is mainly its layered roofs and smoke vent rising above the gatehouse. Please view it from the public road and do not enter the property.
Q&A
- What is the Koyama Family Residence Main House?
- The principal dwelling of a late Edo-period farming estate: a 2-storey timber house of 254 square meters, with an earth-floored work area in the west half and six living rooms in the east half.
- When did the Koyama Family Residence Main House become a Registered Tangible Cultural Property?
- On 14 February 2002, as registration number 27-0167, for its contribution to the historic landscape.
- What should I look for at the Koyama Family Residence Main House?
- The slatted front windows that make it look like a house with a low attic, although sloping beams give it a full upper floor, and the stacked hip-and-gable roofs in full tile.
- Can I go inside the Koyama Family Residence Main House?
- No. It is still lived in and the interior is closed. The exterior can be seen from the public road.
- What kind of roof does the Koyama Family Residence Main House have?
- A hip-and-gable roof in full round-and-flat tiling, with one roof layered over another and a smoke vent on top.
Basic Information
| Name | Koyama Family Residence Main House (兒山家住宅主屋) |
|---|---|
| Location | 1404 Tokikita, Naka-ku, Sakai City, Osaka Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Structure), No. 27-0167 |
| Year Designated | Registered 14 February 2002 |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | 2-storey timber building, tiled roof, building area 254 square meters |
| Owner | Private |
| Public Access | Closed to the public (exterior viewing from the public road) |
References
- Database of National Cultural Properties: Koyama Family Residence Main House (Agency for Cultural Affairs, in Japanese)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00002646
- Koyama Family Residence (Sakai City, in Japanese)
- https://www.city.sakai.lg.jp/kanko/rekishi/bunkazai/bunkazai/torokuseido/koyamakejutaku.html
- Koyama Family Residence (Sakai Tourist Guide, in Japanese)
- https://www.sakai-tcb.or.jp/spot/detail/219
Last verified: 2026.09.28
