What Is the Okamoto Family Residence Main House?
The Okamoto Family Residence Main House (岡本家住宅主屋, Okamoto-ke Jūtaku Shuoku) is a mid-Edo-period Machiya townhouse in Kitamachi, Kaizuka City, Osaka Prefecture, extended in 1841 and registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on March 18, 2003.
It was the family home of the Okamotos, soy sauce brewers who traded as Karatsuya in the old temple town of Kaizuka. The house faces west onto a street called Oshita-suji with a frontage of 6 ken, and it is built in the Hirairi manner: the ridge runs parallel to the street, so the long eaves side forms the facade.
The Agency for Cultural Affairs records it as a single-storey timber building with a tiled roof and a building area of 228 m², the largest of the five registered buildings on the property. Osaka Bunkazai Navi adds that it has a Tsushi-nikai, a low loft level set under the roof of an outwardly one-storey house.
Why the Main House Was Registered
The Okamoto Main House was registered under the criterion of contributing to the historic landscape of the country. Sitting on the northern corner of Oshita-suji, its broad frontage defines that end of the street.
The dating rests on the reception rooms added at the rear, known as the kado-ya zashiki. They hold a Munafuda, a wooden ridge tag, dated Tenpo 12, which is 1841. The core of the Okamoto Family Residence Main House is older than that extension, and the Agency's description suggests it may go back as far as the mid-18th century. That is why the official record gives "mid-Edo" as the date of the building, with 1841 listed separately as the year of the addition.
The roof is the other point the Agency singles out. It describes the Okamoto roof as laid in the same manner (綴葺) as the main house of the nearby Risai Family Residence, where the section straddling the ridge is set one step higher than the rest. Seen from outside, the result is a visible step in the roof slope.
What to Look for at the Okamoto Main House
Start from the far side of Oshita-suji so the whole facade fits in view. Depending on how the ken is measured, 6 ken works out to roughly 11 to 12 meters, and the frontage of the Okamoto Family Residence Main House runs unbroken along the corner.
Then follow the roofline. The stepped section is easier to read from a slight angle a little way back, looking up from the eaves to the ridge, than from right in front of the house.
The 1841 reception rooms lie behind the Okamoto Main House and cannot be seen from the street. It is worth remembering that the firmest piece of dating evidence for the whole building sits in that hidden rear wing.
Visiting the Okamoto Family Residence Main House
The Okamoto Family Residence Main House is a private home, and its interior is not open to visitors. You can view the exterior from Oshita-suji, a public street, but please do not step onto the property or under the eaves.
There is no official policy on photography. Shoot the facade from across the street and keep residents and the open doorway out of the frame. Oshita-suji is an ordinary residential lane, so choose a spot where you are not blocking anyone.
The New Storehouse continues north of the main house along the same street, so the two read together as one frontage. Directions to the property are on the Okamoto Family Residence page.
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Q&A
- What is the Okamoto Family Residence Main House?
- It is the family home of the Okamoto soy sauce brewers (trade name Karatsuya) in Kaizuka's old temple town: a single-storey timber townhouse with a tiled roof, a 6-ken frontage facing west onto Oshita-suji, and a building area of 228 m².
- When was the Okamoto Family Residence Main House built and registered?
- The core dates from the mid-Edo period and may reach back to the mid-18th century. The rear reception rooms were added in 1841. The building was registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on March 18, 2003.
- How was the Okamoto Main House dated?
- A ridge tag dated 1841 survives in the rear extension. The main body predates that addition, and the Agency for Cultural Affairs places it as early as the mid-18th century.
- What is special about the roof of the Okamoto Family Residence Main House?
- The Agency describes it as the same stepped type (綴葺) as the nearby Risai Family Residence, where the part of the roof around the ridge is raised one step above the rest.
- Can I go inside the Okamoto Family Residence Main House?
- No. It is a private residence, and no regular public opening could be confirmed. Please view it from the public street.
Basic Information
| Name | Okamoto Family Residence Main House |
|---|---|
| Location | 18-11 Kitamachi, Kaizuka City, Osaka Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Structure) |
| Year Designated | Registered March 18, 2003 |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Building area 228 m², frontage of 6 ken |
| Owner | Private owner |
| Public Access | Not open to the public (exterior visible from the street) |
References
- Agency for Cultural Affairs, Database of National Cultural Properties: Okamoto Family Residence Main House
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00003285
- Cultural Heritage Online: Okamoto Family Residence Main House (in Japanese)
- https://online.bunka.go.jp/heritages/detail/149895
- Kaizuka City: Okamoto Family Residence (in Japanese)
- https://www.city.kaizuka.lg.jp/bunkazai/bunkazaidata/bunkazai/kuni_sitei/tourokubunkazai/okamotoke.html
- Agency for Cultural Affairs, Database of National Cultural Properties: Risai Family Residence Main House
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00003282
- Osaka Bunkazai Navi: Okamoto Family Residence Main House (in Japanese)
- https://osaka-bunkazainavi.org/bunkazai/%E5%B2%A1%E6%9C%AC%E5%AE%B6%E4%BD%8F%E5%AE%85%E4%B8%BB%E5%B1%8B
Last verified: 2026.09.17
