The Shop Facing the Street
The Marunaka Soy Sauce Brewery Shop (蔵元丸中醤油店舗) is the shop building of a soy sauce brewery of the early Meiji era in Higashide, Aisho-cho, Shiga Prefecture, and was registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property (structure) on October 23, 2008 (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
The Agency records a 2-storey timber building with a tiled roof and a building area of 59 square metres; registration number 25-0271.
A Low Two-Storey Front
The Marunaka Soy Sauce Brewery Shop stands on the south side of the site, facing the street (Agency for Cultural Affairs). It is a timber building 8.8 metres wide and 7.1 metres deep, with a gabled (Kirizuma-zukuri) roof of pantiles (Sangawara-buki). A deep lean-to eave (Geya) runs across the front, and the entrance is set back about 1 metre beneath it.
The walls leave the posts exposed (Shinkabe), with vertical boarding (Tateita-bari) along the lower part (Agency for Cultural Affairs). The upper floor is kept low and has just two windows, so from the street the shop reads as a modest, low-eaved front.
Why It Was Registered
The Agency registered all four Marunaka buildings as properties that contribute to the historic landscape of the country. The Marunaka Soy Sauce Brewery Shop is the only one of them built for trade rather than brewing, and it stands in front of the brewing storehouses as the face of the business on the street.
The Agency and the Aisho Town list both date it to the early Meiji era. A 2009 guide by the Echigawa Tourism Association gives the same date in its heading but says "mid-Meiji" in the text; this article follows the Agency.
What to Look For
From the street, notice how the entrance sits back in the shadow of the deep eave (Agency for Cultural Affairs). Follow the line of the eave, the vertical boarding at the base and the two low upper windows in turn.
The front brewing storehouse stands next door with its gable end to the street. Its plastered gable makes a clear contrast with the exposed-post, board-skirted front of the Marunaka Soy Sauce Brewery Shop, one built for selling and the other for brewing.
Visiting
Marunaka Shoyu sells its soy sauce at the brewery on weekdays from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., closed on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays (Marunaka Shoyu; Aisho Town). The official information does not say whether sales take place inside the Marunaka Soy Sauce Brewery Shop itself.
The front can be seen from the street. No official guidance on photography was found. Directions and parking are covered on the Marunaka Soy Sauce Brewery page.
Q&A
- When was the Marunaka Soy Sauce Brewery Shop built?
- In the early Meiji era, according to the Agency for Cultural Affairs and Aisho Town.
- What does the Marunaka Soy Sauce Brewery Shop look like?
- A 2-storey timber building 8.8 metres wide and 7.1 metres deep, with a gabled pantile roof, a deep lean-to eave across the front and an entrance set back about 1 metre (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
- Can I buy soy sauce at the Marunaka Soy Sauce Brewery Shop?
- Marunaka Shoyu sells at the brewery on weekdays, 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., closed at weekends and on public holidays. The official site does not say whether sales are made in this building.
- Where is the Marunaka Soy Sauce Brewery Shop?
- At 229 Higashide, Aisho-cho, Shiga Prefecture, on the south side of the site facing the street (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
- When was the Marunaka Soy Sauce Brewery Shop registered?
- On October 23, 2008 (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
Basic Information
| Name | Marunaka Soy Sauce Brewery Shop (蔵元丸中醤油店舗) |
|---|---|
| Location | 229 Higashide, Aisho-cho, Echi-gun, Shiga Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Structure) |
| Year Designated | Registered 2008/10/23 (Heisei 20) |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | 2-storey timber building, tiled roof, building area 59 m², 8.8 m wide by 7.1 m deep |
| Owner | Marunaka Shoyu Co., Ltd. |
| Public Access | Exterior visible from the street; sales at the brewery on weekdays, 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. (whether in this building is unconfirmed) |
References
- Marunaka Soy Sauce Brewery Shop (Database of National Cultural Properties, Agency for Cultural Affairs)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00007372
- Marunaka Soy Sauce Brewery Shop (Cultural Heritage Online, Japanese)
- https://online.bunka.go.jp/heritages/detail/120244
- Nationally registered cultural properties (Aisho Town, Japanese)
- https://www.town.aisho.shiga.jp/kosodate/3/bunkazai/bunkazai/2555.html
- Registered Tangible Cultural Properties in Aisho (exhibition guide, Echigawa Tourism Association of Aisho, Japanese)
- https://researchmap.jp/read-945021/misc/12560916/attachment_file.pdf
- About Marunaka Shoyu (official website, Japanese)
- https://www.marunaka-shouyu.com/user_data/about/
- Marunaka Shoyu (Aisho Town tourism information, Japanese)
- https://www.town.aisho.shiga.jp/kankou/tokusanhin/3763.html
Last verified: 2026.11.09
