The core of the household, turned toward the road
The Himurean Main House is an early 19th-century Machiya townhouse on the former Kyo Kaido highway in Nishimotocho, Omihachiman, Shiga Prefecture, entered on the national register as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property in December 1998.
It is timber framed and tiled, with a floor area of 117 square metres, the largest of the 7 registered buildings on the plot. The roof is Kirizuma-zukuri and the long side faces the highway in the Hirairi manner, finished with Sangawara-buki pantiles. Above the ground floor sits a low Tsushi-nikai half-storey. That is why the register calls the building single-storey: only one level was meant to be lived on.
A Doma earth-floored passage runs from the frontage through to the back, with 4 rooms set in a line along it. The arrangement is the common one among the townhouses of Omihachiman, and the Himurean Main House still holds it.
The front of the building was remodelled into a soba restaurant. The fact that it is still in daily use is part of the reason it survived at all.
Why it was registered
The database of the Agency for Cultural Affairs values the Himurean Main House as a good example of the townhouses that keep the earlier appearance of the western district along the old highway. The criterion applied was contribution to the historic landscape of the country.
Its registration number is 25-0096, first of the 7 items entered that day, and it is the only building here that goes back to the Edo period. The other 6 are dated to around 1921 and were added around this core.
What to look at
Stand on the highway and take the frontage as a whole. A low eave line and the small openings of the half-storey run horizontally, and the high wall meets the building at its eastern end. Because the wall was designed to match the front of the main house, the two read as one continuous surface.
From inside the shop, look toward the back. The earth-floored passage keeps going, and the depth of the plot becomes obvious. In a townhouse the section is where the interest lies, not the width of the frontage.
The numbers make the same point. The reception wing behind measures 80 square metres and the annex 30 square metres. At 117 square metres, the Himurean Main House is plainly where the weight of the household sits.
Visiting
The front of the Himurean Main House works as a soba restaurant, so during business hours you can go into that part of the building. This is not public opening as a cultural property, and the living quarters behind are closed. Reported hours are 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., midday only, with an early close once the day's noodles run out. Mondays and the third Tuesday of the month are given as rest days. These are restaurant hours and can change without notice.
The exterior can be seen in full from the old highway. Directions to the property and the viewing conditions for the other buildings are set out on the Himurean page.
Photographing the exterior from the street is unproblematic. Inside the shop other customers will be in the frame, so ask before raising a camera.
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Q&A
- Can you go inside the Himurean Main House?
- Partly. The front rooms are a working soba restaurant, so that part is accessible during business hours. There is no public opening as a cultural property, and the living quarters at the back are closed.
- How old is the Himurean Main House?
- The national database places it in the early 19th century, in the later Edo period. The other 6 buildings on the plot date to around 1921, so the main house is the oldest here by a long way.
- Is the Himurean Main House an Important Cultural Property?
- No. It is a Registered Tangible Cultural Property, entered on the register in December 1998. Registration and designation are two different systems, and this building belongs to the former.
- Why does the Himurean Main House have an upper floor if it is listed as single-storey?
- The upper level is a tsushi-nikai, a low half-storey under the roof that was not used as living space. The register describes the building as single-storey for that reason.
- Can you photograph the Himurean Main House?
- From the old highway, yes. Inside, the rooms are in use by restaurant customers, so ask first.
Basic Information
| Name | Himurean Main House (日牟禮庵主屋) |
|---|---|
| Location | 61 Nishimotocho, Omihachiman, Shiga Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (building) |
| Year Designated | Registered 1998/12/11 (Heisei 10) |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Single-storey timber frame, tiled roof, floor area 117 square metres |
| Owner | Private; no owner name recorded in the Agency for Cultural Affairs database |
| Public Access | Front rooms in use as a soba restaurant and enterable during business hours; the rear buildings are closed |
References
- National Cultural Properties Database, Himurean Main House (Agency for Cultural Affairs)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/101/00000973
- National Cultural Properties Database, Himurean Main House
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/101/00000973
- Cultural Heritage Online, Himurean Main House
- https://online.bunka.go.jp/heritages/detail/180883
- Omihachiman City, Cultural Properties
- https://www.city.omihachiman.lg.jp/kanko/rekishi/1/index.html
Last verified: 2026.09.17
