What Is the Yoshida Family Residence Storehouse?
The Yoshida Family Residence Storehouse (吉田家住宅土蔵, Yoshida-ke Jūtaku Dozō) is a two-story Taishō-era (1912 to 1925) fireproof storehouse in Toyosaki, Kita-ku, Osaka City, registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property in 2008. It stands at the northwest corner of the main house of the Yoshida estate, the cluster known as Toyosaki Nagaya.
It measures 3.9 m by 3.0 m, a building area of 11 m², which makes it the smallest of the eight registered buildings. The thick earthen walls follow the Dozo-zukuri method, the gabled roof is laid with traditional round-and-flat hongawara tiles, and a single canopy of lighter pantiles shelters the south face.
Why the Yoshida Family Residence Storehouse Was Registered
The Yoshida Family Residence Storehouse was registered for its contribution to the historic townscape. The Agency for Cultural Affairs presents it as an example of a city storehouse built as one with the main house.
On a farmstead a storehouse can stand well apart from the house. On a crowded urban lot ringed by row houses there was no such room, and the storehouse had to be pressed into a corner of the main house. That arrangement, small as it is, says a good deal about how tightly an Osaka estate of the 1910s and 1920s was packed.
What to Look For at the Yoshida Family Residence Storehouse
The walls of the Yoshida Family Residence Storehouse are finished in white Shikkui lime plaster. Around the ground-floor doorway the plasterer modeled the frame in the outline of a torii gate, and hung doors finished in Kakegonuri, stepped plaster edges that lock together when the doors close so that fire cannot find a gap.
On the inner face of the doors is a raised Mokkō motif, a quatrefoil-like crest, worked in plaster where few would ever see it. It is also worth comparing the canopy on the south side, roofed in pantiles, with the heavier hongawara tiles of the main roof.
Visiting the Yoshida Family Residence Storehouse
The Yoshida Family Residence Storehouse is part of a private home and is not open. It stands inside the plot at the northwest corner of the main house, so it cannot really be seen from the street.
The plaster details of the doors are therefore out of view. Toyosaki Nagaya has opened during Open Nagaya Osaka in some years, but no record was found of the storehouse being among the buildings shown.
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- Find tours, activities & transport passes near Yoshida Family Residence Storehouse
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Q&A
- When was the Yoshida Family Residence Storehouse built?
- The Agency for Cultural Affairs dates it to the Taishō era (1912 to 1925). It was registered on July 8, 2008.
- How big is the Yoshida Family Residence Storehouse?
- It measures 3.9 m by 3.0 m, with a building area of 11 m², and has two stories. It is the smallest of the eight Yoshida buildings.
- Why is the Yoshida Family Residence Storehouse a Registered Tangible Cultural Property?
- It was registered for its contribution to the historic townscape, as an example of an urban storehouse built together with the main house.
- What is special about the doors of the Yoshida Family Residence Storehouse?
- The door frame is modeled in plaster in the shape of a torii, the doors are finished in kakegonuri plaster, and there is a mokko motif on the inner face.
- Can I see the Yoshida Family Residence Storehouse?
- No. It is part of a private home and stands inside the plot, so it is hard to see even from the street.
Basic Information
| Name | Yoshida Family Residence Storehouse |
|---|---|
| Location | 1-47 Toyosaki, Kita-ku, Osaka City, Osaka Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Building) |
| Year Designated | Registered 2008 |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Building area 11 m² (3.9 m by 3.0 m) |
| Owner | Not listed in the Agency for Cultural Affairs database |
| Public Access | Not open to the public (in residential use) |
References
- Agency for Cultural Affairs Database: Yoshida Family Residence Storehouse
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00007249
- Osaka City Housing Information Center, Ange No. 94: Exhibition "Osaka Nagaya" (in Japanese)
- https://www.osaka-angenet.jp/ange/ange94/260000604
Last verified: 2026.10.01
