The Kiln at a Glance
The Former Nakagawa Brick Factory Hoffman Kiln (旧中川煉瓦製造所ホフマン窯, Kyū Nakagawa Renga Seizōsho Hofuman-gama) is a brick-firing kiln of about 1916 in Funaki-cho, Omihachiman City, Shiga Prefecture, and was registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property (structure) on November 10, 2005 (Agency for Cultural Affairs). Its registration number is 25-0233.
The Agency records a brick structure 55 meters long and 14 meters wide, with one chimney. The works stood in the north of the old town, and the kiln occupies the part of the site that borders the Hachiman-bori canal.
A Ring Kiln Built for Continuous Firing
A Hoffman kiln links its firing chambers in a ring so that bricks can be fired without stopping. According to the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, Japan's first Hoffman kiln was built in 1872 at Kosuge, near Tokyo, to supply the Ginza brick district.
The Nakagawa kiln is laid out as a long oval running north to south, 55 meters by 14 meters (Agency for Cultural Affairs). Arched structures circle a central flue almost all the way round, and a chimney about 30 meters tall rises near the southern end.
The outer walls are laid in English bond, with courses of stretchers and headers alternating, and are pierced by a row of arched openings.
Why It Was Registered
The Agency describes the Former Nakagawa Brick Factory Hoffman Kiln as one of the few Hoffman kilns left in Japan, and registered it as a structure that would be difficult to reproduce.
The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry counts only four modern Hoffman kilns whose kiln body survives: those in Fukaya (Saitama), Maizuru (Kyoto) and Nogi (Tochigi), and this one. Omihachiman City's cultural properties plan also cites the kiln as an example of the city's modern heritage.
What to Look For
The first thing to find is the chimney, about 30 meters tall, near the southern end (Agency for Cultural Affairs). The body of the kiln runs low for 55 meters from north to south, its outer wall broken by repeated arched openings.
Closer in, the arches over the openings and the alternating courses of the English-bond brickwork become easier to read. Because the Nakagawa kiln borders the Hachiman-bori canal, the chimney can also be picked out from the canal side.
Visiting
No official information from the owner or the city on access to the inside of the Former Nakagawa Brick Factory Hoffman Kiln was found, so the kiln is seen from outside the grounds.
It stands on the main site of the former brickworks by the Hachiman-bori canal, about 2 kilometers northwest of JR Omi-Hachiman Station in a straight line.
Q&A
- Where is the Former Nakagawa Brick Factory Hoffman Kiln?
- In Funaki-cho, Omihachiman City, Shiga Prefecture, on the former brickworks site by the Hachiman-bori canal (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
- When was the Former Nakagawa Brick Factory Hoffman Kiln built?
- In about 1916 (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
- How big is the Former Nakagawa Brick Factory Hoffman Kiln?
- It is 55 meters long and 14 meters wide, with a chimney about 30 meters tall (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
- Can I go inside the Former Nakagawa Brick Factory Hoffman Kiln?
- No official information on interior access was found; the kiln is seen from outside the grounds.
- When was the Former Nakagawa Brick Factory Hoffman Kiln registered?
- On November 10, 2005, under registration number 25-0233 (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
Basic Information
| Name | Former Nakagawa Brick Factory Hoffman Kiln (旧中川煉瓦製造所ホフマン窯) |
|---|---|
| Location | 59-1 Higashizawada, Funaki-cho, Omihachiman City, Shiga Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Structure) |
| Year Designated | Registered 2005/11/10 (Heisei 17) |
| Quantity | 1 site |
| Dimensions | Brick, 55 m long and 14 m wide, with 1 chimney |
| Owner | Not listed in the Agency for Cultural Affairs database |
| Public Access | Exterior only (no official information on interior access) |
References
- Former Nakagawa Brick Factory Hoffman Kiln (Database of National Cultural Properties, Agency for Cultural Affairs)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/101/00004986
- Former Nakagawa Brick Factory Hoffman Kiln (Cultural Heritage Online, Japanese)
- https://online.bunka.go.jp/heritages/detail/181206
- Heritage of Industrial Modernization 33 (Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, Japanese)
- https://www.meti.go.jp/policy/mono_info_service/mono/creative/kindaikasangyoisan/pdf/isangun.pdf
- Omihachiman City Plan for the Preservation and Use of Cultural Properties, Chapters 2 and 6 (Japanese)
- https://www.city.omihachiman.lg.jp/material/files/group/102/dai2syou,dai6syou.pdf
Last verified: 2026.11.01
