What Is the Sakanoue Family Residence Storehouse?
The Sakanoue Family Residence Storehouse (阪之上家住宅蔵, Sakanoue-ke Jūtaku Kura) is a 2-storey earthen-walled storehouse built in 1934 on a private estate in Hamadera Showa-cho, Nishi Ward, Sakai City, Osaka Prefecture, and registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on 18 November 1999. It covers 20 square meters and is an uchigura, an "inner storehouse" attached directly to the house rather than standing apart in the yard.
The Sakanoue Storehouse was built in the same year as the detached reception room and adjoins its east side. It stands on the eastern edge of the lot, close to the boundary with the neighbouring property.
A Textbook Storehouse Plan
The Sakanoue Family Residence Storehouse has a Kirizuma-zukuri gabled roof with its ridge running north to south, and it is entered Hirairi style, from one of the long sides. It measures 3 bays along the ridge (Ketayuki) by 2 bays across (Harima). The Agency for Cultural Affairs calls this a standard layout for a 2-storey storehouse.
With the ridge on a north-south line, the long walls face east and west, and the west wall is the one that meets the detached room. That direct connection between reception wing and storehouse is what makes it an inner storehouse.
A Roof of Full Round-and-Flat Tiles
For all its ordinary proportions, the Sakanoue Storehouse is roofed in Hongawarabuki, the heavy system of alternating flat and semicircular tiles more usual on temples and formal buildings. The detached room next door uses lighter Sangawara-buki pan tiles, so the difference is plain when the two roofs are seen together. Putting a full tiled roof on so small a storehouse points to the care taken over the building work.
The Agency notes that the Sakanoue Family Residence Storehouse works together with the detached room to form one wing of the estate, and registered it as a model of design. The reception wing, storehouse and corridor were all completed in 1934 and make up the Japanese-style quarter of the house.
Seeing the Sakanoue Storehouse
The Sakanoue Family Residence Storehouse is part of a private home, and the interior is not open to visitors. Sakai City asks that the house be viewed from outside only.
Because it sits at the eastern edge of the lot, behind the detached room, the Sakanoue Storehouse can hardly be seen from the streets on the south and west. Expect at most a glimpse of the roof, and please do not enter the grounds or the neighbouring property.
Q&A
- What is the Sakanoue Family Residence Storehouse?
- A 2-storey earthen-walled storehouse built in 1934 in the Hamadera district of Sakai, attached to the east side of the detached reception room. Its building area is 20 square meters.
- When was the Sakanoue Family Residence Storehouse registered?
- On 18 November 1999, as Registered Tangible Cultural Property No. 27-0082, as a model of design.
- How big is the Sakanoue Storehouse and what shape is it?
- It is a 2-storey gabled building with a north-south ridge, entered from the long side, measuring 3 bays by 2 bays.
- What is unusual about the roof of the Sakanoue Storehouse?
- Although the storehouse is of standard size, its roof is laid in full hongawara tiling of alternating flat and round tiles.
- Can I see the Sakanoue Family Residence Storehouse from the street?
- Hardly. It stands on the eastern edge of the lot behind the detached room. The interior is private.
Basic Information
| Name | Sakanoue Family Residence Storehouse |
|---|---|
| Location | 5-594 Hamadera Showa-cho, Nishi-ku, Sakai City, Osaka Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Structure), No. 27-0082 |
| Year Designated | Registered 18 November 1999 |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | 2-storey timber building, tiled roof, building area 20 square meters |
| Owner | Private |
| Public Access | Not open to the public |
References
- Database of National Cultural Properties: Sakanoue Family Residence Storehouse (Agency for Cultural Affairs, Japanese)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00001438
- Sakanoue Family Residence Storehouse (Cultural Heritage Online, Japanese)
- https://bunka.nii.ac.jp/heritages/detail/137208
- Sakanoue Family Residence Western-Style Building and Others (Sakai City, Japanese)
- https://www.city.sakai.lg.jp/kanko/rekishi/bunkazai/bunkazai/torokuseido/sakanoueke.html
Last verified: 2026.09.28
