Takazawa Family Residence Barn: A Work Building With a Silkworm Loft
The Takazawa Family Residence Barn (高澤家住宅納屋, Takazawa-ke Jūtaku Naya) is a timber farm building from around 1870 on the east side of the Takazawa estate in Nagano, Gyoda City, Saitama Prefecture, with an earth-floored work space below and a silkworm-rearing room above, registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on May 15, 2007.
The national register places it on the east side of the lot facing west, while Gyoda City describes it as southeast of the main house; both the city and the Takazawa Memorial Hall call it the shinoya. It measures 5.5 by 3 ken, with a building area of 55 square meters, under a gabled Kirizuma-zukuri roof of Sangawara-buki pantiles, entered on the long side in the Hirairi manner.
Why the Takazawa Barn Was Registered
The Takazawa Family Residence Barn was registered for its contribution to the historic landscape. The Agency for Cultural Affairs singles out its distinctive exterior as a building of a sericulture farm.
The building divides its work by floor. The ground floor is a Doma, an earth-floored space for tools and farm tasks. Above it is a low loft, the Tsushi-nikai, given over to raising silkworms. The structure column of the register lists the barn as single-story, while the descriptive text counts that loft and calls it a two-story tsushi building.
The upper floor of the main house was a rearing room too, so the Takazawa raised silkworms in both their home and this work building. The barn likely added rearing space the main house alone could not provide.
What to Look For
The walls of the Takazawa Barn are built in the Shinkabe manner, with posts and beams left visible on the surface. The timber frame draws the lines of the façade, plain but orderly.
The feature to look for is the high windows in the south gable and on the east side. They were there to change the air in the rearing loft, and a row of openings set high in the wall is the clearest outward sign that this building was made for silkworms.
Look at the eaves as well. Lean-to roofs, or Geya, wrap the north and west sides, so a second, lower eave runs beneath the main gable. They extend and shelter the working space, and they give the barn the look of a building made for use.
Viewing the Takazawa Family Residence Barn
The interior of the Takazawa Family Residence Barn is not open. It stands toward the east side of the estate, so you see what you can of it from the eastern side of the path between the gate and the main house.
The windows in the south gable are easiest to make out from the south. Outside the café's opening hours the estate is a private home, so enter the grounds only on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays while the café is open, and do not go too close to the building.
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Q&A
- When was the Takazawa Family Residence Barn built?
- It dates to around 1870.
- What was the Takazawa Family Residence Barn used for?
- It was a work building for a silk-farming household, with an earth-floored work space on the ground floor and a silkworm-rearing room above. Gyoda City and the Takazawa Memorial Hall call it the shinoya.
- Is the Takazawa Family Residence Barn one story or two?
- The register’s structure column lists it as single-story, but its description calls it a two-story tsushi building, counting the low loft that served as a rearing room.
- How big is the Takazawa Family Residence Barn?
- It is 5.5 by 3 ken, with a building area of 55 square meters, and has lean-to roofs on the north and west sides.
- Can I visit the Takazawa Family Residence Barn?
- The interior is not open. On Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays, when the Takazawa Memorial Hall café is open, you can view its exterior from the path.
Basic Information
| Name | Takazawa Family Residence Barn |
|---|---|
| Location | 3-5-41 Nagano, Gyoda City, Saitama Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Building) |
| Year Designated | Registered May 15, 2007 (54th round, registration no. 11-0105) |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Building area 55 square meters; 5.5 by 3 ken |
| Owner | Private owner |
| Public Access | Interior not open (exterior only) |
References
- Agency for Cultural Affairs, National Cultural Properties Database: Takazawa Family Residence Barn
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00006012
- Cultural Heritage Online: Takazawa Family Residence Barn
- https://online.bunka.go.jp/heritages/detail/119087
- Gyoda City: Takazawa Family Residence (Main House and Four Other Buildings)
- https://www.city.gyoda.lg.jp/soshiki/shougaigakusyubu/bunkazaihogo/gyomu/rekishi_bunkazai/1/2323.html
- Takazawa Memorial Hall official website
- https://takazawakan.jimdofree.com/
Last verified: 2026.09.26
