A Small Early Meiji Store, Older Than Its Neighbour
The Matsumiya Family Residence Rice Storehouse (松宮家住宅米蔵, Matsumiya-ke Jūtaku Komegura) is a two-storey earthen-walled storehouse of the early Meiji era in Sugi, Hirakata City, Osaka Prefecture, registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on 5 December 2019. It is dated to between 1868 and 1882 and was repaired in 1972.
It stands on the north side of the plot, immediately east of the west storehouse, facing south. With a building area of 16 square metres it is the second smallest of the 4 registered buildings of the Matsumiya Family Residence, after the front gate. It is, however, the older of the 2 storehouses.
As its name suggests, it was presumably built to hold the household's rice.
Plaster Carried Up to the Eaves
Like its neighbour, the Matsumiya Family Residence Rice Storehouse is built in the Dozo-zukuri manner and has a detached oki-yane roof of pan tiles (Sangawara-buki) set over its clay-sealed body. The walls are white lime plaster (Shikkui) with a thickened hachimaki band around the top.
The detail worth looking for is at the eaves. According to the Agency for Cultural Affairs, a gap is left at the eave line and the plaster is then carried right up over the underside of the eaves. Covering not only the walls but the eave soffits in plaster suggests an intention to keep exposed timber away from fire.
A lean-to roof (Geya) runs across the full width of the south front. The west storehouse next door has a lean-to on only the eastern half of its front, so the 2 stores present quite different faces to the compound.
Two Stores along the Northern Street
Inside, each floor of the Matsumiya Family Residence Rice Storehouse is a single room. The roof is carried on a Wagoya frame, the most common Japanese roof structure, with short posts standing on horizontal beams.
The Agency for Cultural Affairs notes that, together with the west storehouse, this building gives the street along the north side a solid, weighty character. The 2 white-walled stores form the back of the Matsumiya compound as seen from that street. It was registered as contributing to the historic landscape of the country.
By date, the rice storehouse came first, in the early Meiji years; the west storehouse for household goods was added beside it to the west in the middle Meiji years.
Viewing the Matsumiya Family Residence Rice Storehouse
The Matsumiya Family Residence Rice Storehouse faces into the compound, so its south front with the lean-to is not visible from outside. From the street along the north edge of the plot you see its north wall and roof.
From that northern street the 2 stores appear side by side; the rice storehouse is the eastern one and slightly the smaller. The interior is closed and the grounds cannot be entered.
Directions and the general conditions for visiting are on the Matsumiya Family Residence page.
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Q&A
- When was the Matsumiya Family Residence Rice Storehouse built?
- In the early Meiji era, between 1868 and 1882. It is older than the west storehouse and was repaired in 1972.
- What is special about the walls of the Matsumiya Family Residence Rice Storehouse?
- They are finished in lime plaster with a thickened band at the top, and the plaster is carried up over the underside of the eaves, with a gap left at the eave line.
- How does the Matsumiya Family Residence Rice Storehouse differ from the west storehouse?
- It is older and a little smaller. Its lean-to spans the full front, while the west storehouse has one on the eastern half only, and its roof frame is conventional wagoya rather than rising beams.
- Can the Matsumiya Family Residence Rice Storehouse be seen from outside?
- Its north wall and roof can be seen from the street along the north side of the plot. The south front faces into the compound.
- When was the Matsumiya Family Residence Rice Storehouse registered?
- On 5 December 2019, as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property, under number 27-0791.
Basic Information
| Name | Matsumiya Family Residence Rice Storehouse |
|---|---|
| Location | 442 Sugi 1-chome, Hirakata City, Osaka Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Building) |
| Year Designated | Registered 5 December 2019 |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Earthen-walled storehouse, 2 storeys, tile roof, building area 16 square metres |
| Owner | Not published (not listed in the national database) |
| Public Access | Not open to the public; exterior from the northern street only |
References
- Database of National Cultural Properties: Matsumiya Family Residence Rice Storehouse (Agency for Cultural Affairs)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00013149
- Database of National Cultural Properties: Matsumiya Family Residence West Storehouse (Agency for Cultural Affairs)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00013148
- Cultural Heritage Online: Matsumiya Family Residence Rice Storehouse
- https://online.bunka.go.jp/heritages/detail/404671
- Press Release on the Former Kinami Family Residence Registration (Hirakata City, 18 November 2022)
- https://www.city.hirakata.osaka.jp/cmsfiles/contents/0000047/47743/2211182.pdf
Last verified: 2026.09.26
