What Is the Former Ishibashi Family Residence Middle Main House?
The Former Ishibashi Family Residence Middle Main House (旧石橋家住宅中主屋, Kyū Ishibashi-ke Jūtaku Naka-shuoku) is an early Meiji-period townhouse built between 1868 and 1882 in Serimachi, Hikone, Shiga Prefecture, and it was registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property in 2013. The timber house is mostly single-storey with a 2-storey section, has a gabled roof of interlocking pantiles (Sangawara-buki) and covers 185 square metres.
It is the middle of the three main houses on the Ishibashi street front, set between the East and West Main Houses with its ridge aligned to theirs. The late Edo-period West Main House is joined to its western side, and the South Storehouse is attached to its kitchen at the back. In plan it is the hinge of the compound, linking the street to the storehouses behind.
Why It Was Registered: A Dignified Street Front
The Agency for Cultural Affairs describes the Former Ishibashi Family Residence Middle Main House as a townhouse with a dignified bearing. Four elements create that impression: an upper storey sealed in white Shikkui plaster, small firewall wings (sode-udatsu, a form of Udatsu) projecting at each side, a projecting wooden lattice (degoshi) across the ground floor, and a low wooden railing called a komayose set in front of it.
The sode-udatsu marks the boundary with the neighbouring house, while the komayose keeps a step's distance between the lattice and the street. Each is a familiar part of castle-town houses, but the Middle Main House gathers all of them on a single facade, and that combination is what gives it presence on the street. It was registered under the criterion of contributing to the historic landscape of the nation.
Inside the Plan: A Wide Earthen Passage and Six Rooms
According to the national record, a wide earth-floored passage (Doma) runs along the west side of the house, with a generous kitchen at the rear. The raised floor holds six rooms in two rows of three.
Hikone City explains that most townhouses in the Serimachi area keep one side as a doma and line up their rooms in one or two rows. The Middle Main House is of the two-row kind, notable for its full set of six rooms and its large kitchen. Its neighbour, the West Main House, runs its doma down the centre with a single row of rooms on each side, so the two attached houses of the same family arrange their space quite differently.
Seen from the street, the facade reads in two tiers: white plaster and firewall wings above, lattice and railing below. To the east, the South Wall fills the gap between the Middle Main House and the East Main House.
Seeing the Former Ishibashi Family Residence Middle Main House
The Hikone Tourism Association lists the Former Ishibashi Family Residence Middle Main House as exterior viewing only; the interior is closed. The lattice, railing, plastered upper storey and firewall wings are all in plain view from the street, but the wide doma, the six rooms and the kitchen cannot be seen from outside.
The ground behind the komayose belongs to the house, so enjoy the lattice from the street side of the railing. Directions and viewing conditions for the whole compound are on the Former Ishibashi Family Residence page.
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Q&A
- When was the Former Ishibashi Family Residence Middle Main House built and registered?
- It dates from the early Meiji period, between 1868 and 1882, and was registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on June 21, 2013.
- Is the interior of the Former Ishibashi Family Residence Middle Main House open to visitors?
- No. Viewing is limited to the exterior, which can be seen from the street.
- What should I look at on the facade of the Former Ishibashi Family Residence Middle Main House?
- The white plastered upper storey with its firewall wings, and the projecting lattice on the ground floor with the low komayose railing in front.
- What is the floor plan of the Former Ishibashi Family Residence Middle Main House?
- Six rooms in two rows of three, set beside a wide earth-floored passage on the west side, with a large kitchen at the back.
- Where does the Former Ishibashi Family Residence Middle Main House stand within the compound?
- In the middle of the three main houses on the street, with the East Main House on one side, the West Main House on the other and the South Storehouse attached at the rear.
Basic Information
| Name | Former Ishibashi Family Residence Middle Main House (旧石橋家住宅中主屋) |
|---|---|
| Location | 11-1 Serimachi, Hikone, Shiga Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Structure) |
| Year Designated | 2013 (Heisei 25) |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Timber, single storey with a 2-storey section, tiled roof, building area 185 square metres |
| Owner | Hikone City |
| Public Access | Exterior only (interior not open to the public) |
References
- Agency for Cultural Affairs, Database of National Cultural Properties: Former Ishibashi Family Residence Middle Main House
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00009628
- Cultural Heritage Online: Former Ishibashi Family Residence Middle Main House
- https://online.bunka.go.jp/heritages/detail/206514
- Agency for Cultural Affairs, Database of National Cultural Properties: Former Ishibashi Family Residence West Main House
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00009629
- Hikone Tourism Association: Former Ishibashi Family Residence Middle Main House
- https://www.hikoneshi.com/sightseeing/article/kyu-ishibashike-jutaku-nakashuoku
- Hikone City: Hikone Kawaramachi-Serimachi Preservation District for Groups of Traditional Buildings
- https://www.city.hikone.lg.jp/kanko/rekishi/9/2/7714.html
Last verified: 2026.09.25
