What Is the Kasen Brewery Store and Main House?
The Kasen Brewery Store and Main House (華泉酒造場店舗兼主屋, Kasen Shuzōjō Tenpo-ken-shuoku) is a mid-Meiji Machiya townhouse, built between about 1883 and 1896, that faces west onto Honmachi-dōri in Ushiroda, Tsuwano Town, Shimane Prefecture; it was registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on 10 September 2010. It is a 2-storey timber building with a tiled roof and a building area of 303 square meters.
Of the five registered buildings at Kasen Brewery, this is the only one from the Meiji period; the four storehouses behind and beside it go back to the late Edo period. Its street front is still the brewery's sake shop.
The frontage is 11 meters wide. A ten-mat reception room is attached on the north side and a kitchen and service rooms at the back. The registered name, "store and main house," describes exactly that: a shop on the street with the family's living quarters under the same roof.
Registered as a Model of Design
The Kasen Brewery Store and Main House was registered, as No. 32-0140, under the criterion of serving as a model of form and design. The four storehouses registered on the same day were all listed for their contribution to the landscape, so this is the one building on the site recognised for its design in its own right.
The Agency for Cultural Affairs description works down the facade from roof to ground-floor lattice and concludes that the house keeps the character of a merchant's premises well. In other words, every element expected of a merchant frontage on Tsuwano's main street is present here in a single building.
Reading the Facade from the Top Down
The roof is gabled and laid with Sangawara-buki pantiles, and a lean-to eave projects across the front, drawing a single line above the heads of people walking by.
The upper storey is finished in Ōkabe plaster, with the posts buried inside the wall, and pierced by Mushiko-mado slatted windows. The fine vertical slats are the only break in the white wall. Wrapping the timbers in plaster was a common fire precaution in towns of close-packed wooden houses.
At each end of the upper storey stands a sode-udatsu, a short firewall stepped forward at the boundary with the neighbours, framing the 11-meter front from both sides.
The ground floor has projecting lattices among its fittings. Step back to the far side of the street and the eave, the slatted windows, the firewalls and the lattice stack up in order, and the whole front of the Kasen Brewery Store and Main House reads as one composition.
Visiting the Kasen Brewery Store and Main House
The street side of the Kasen Brewery Store and Main House is the Kasen Shuzo sake shop, and visitors can step inside during opening hours. The Tsuwano Tourism Association lists the hours as 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., open every day. The reception room, kitchen and other living quarters behind the shop are private.
The exterior can be seen from Honmachi-dōri at any time; the far side of the street gives the best view of the full frontage. Take photos from the public road, and ask the staff before photographing inside the shop. The layout of all five buildings and directions from the station are on the Kasen Brewery page.
- 📍 Plan Your Visit to Shimane
- Find tours, activities & transport passes near Kasen Brewery Store and Main House
- [ Izumo Taisha Shrine & Adachi Museum Gardens ]
Q&A
- When was the Kasen Brewery Store and Main House built?
- In the mid-Meiji period, which the national database gives as about 1883 to 1896. It is the only Meiji building among the five registered at Kasen Brewery.
- What kind of building is the Kasen Brewery Store and Main House?
- A townhouse facing west onto Honmachi-dōri, 11 meters wide, 2 storeys, with a tiled roof and a building area of 303 square meters. The front is a shop, with a ten-mat room on the north side and a kitchen at the back.
- What should I look for at the Kasen Brewery Store and Main House?
- The facade: the lean-to eave, the plastered upper storey with slatted windows, the short firewalls at either end and the ground-floor lattice. Stand across the street to see them all together.
- When was the Kasen Brewery Store and Main House registered?
- On 10 September 2010, as Registered Tangible Cultural Property No. 32-0140, under the criterion of serving as a model of form and design.
- Can I go inside the Kasen Brewery Store and Main House, and what are the hours?
- Yes, the shop at the front is open 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. every day, according to the Tsuwano Tourism Association. The living quarters behind it are private.
Basic Information
| Name | Kasen Brewery Store and Main House (華泉酒造場店舗兼主屋) |
|---|---|
| Location | Ro 221 Honmachi, Ushiroda, Tsuwano Town, Kanoashi District, Shimane Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Building), No. 32-0140 |
| Year Designated | Registered 10 September 2010 |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | 2-storey timber building, tiled roof, building area 303 square meters, frontage 11 meters |
| Owner | Not listed in the Agency for Cultural Affairs database (used by Kasen Shuzo) |
| Public Access | Shop open 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. daily; living quarters private |
References
- Database of National Cultural Properties: Kasen Brewery Store and Main House (Agency for Cultural Affairs)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/101/00008348
- Registered Tangible Cultural Properties (Buildings) in Shimane (Shimane Prefecture)
- https://www.pref.shimane.lg.jp/life/bunka/bunkazai/shimane/tourokubunkazai2.html
- Kasen Shuzo (Tsuwano Tourism Association)
- https://tsuwano-kanko.net/info/kasen/
Last verified: 2026.09.27
