Nakayama Family Residence Charcoal and Cotton Storehouse

What Is the Nakayama Family Residence Charcoal and Cotton Storehouse?

The Nakayama Family Residence Charcoal and Cotton Storehouse (中山家住宅炭蔵綿蔵, Nakayama-ke Jūtaku Sumigura Watagura) is a late Edo-period storehouse on the Nakayama estate in Bessho, Matsubara City, Osaka Prefecture, divided into a charcoal store and a cotton store under one roof, and registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on March 2, 2004.

It stands south of the main house entrance, separated from it by a wall with a wicket gate. It is a single-story dozo-zukuri storehouse with a gabled roof of pantiles, 5 bays by 2, with a building area of 42 square meters.

Two Stores Under One Roof

Of the building's 5 bays, the southern 3 held charcoal and the rest cotton. Fuel and a cash crop could hardly be more different, and the Nakayama Family Residence Charcoal and Cotton Storehouse kept them in separate rooms beneath a shared roof.

The floors follow the contents. The charcoal store has a beaten-earth floor, the cotton store a raised wooden one, which kept the cotton dry and away from the dirt of the fuel.

Details Worth Knowing

On the east side the eaves are pushed well out on projecting brackets, sheltering two doorways, one for each store, so goods could be moved in and out under cover.

The roof framing is plain wagoya work, posts standing on beams to carry the ridge and purlins. Some of the estate's storehouses use a heavier system of ridge beam and sloping rafters; this one was built for use rather than show.

Can You See the Charcoal and Cotton Storehouse?

The Nakayama Family Residence Charcoal and Cotton Storehouse stands inside the estate in front of the main house and cannot be seen from outside. The residence is a private home and is closed to visitors; the Nakayama Family Residence page explains what can be seen from the street.