What the Sono Family Residence East Storehouse Is
The Sono Family Residence East Storehouse (薗家住宅東土蔵, Sono-ke Jūtaku Higashi-dozō) is a two-storey late Edo-period Dozo-zukuri storehouse for household goods on the estate of the Sono family, former shipping merchants in Sono, Gobo City, Wakayama Prefecture, and was registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on 15 August 2024. With a building area of 62 square metres it is the largest of the estate's four storehouses.
It stands in the middle of the north side facing south, with the west storehouse beside it. The roof is a Kirizuma-zukuri gable with the entrance on the long side, Hirairi, in Hongawarabuki tiling, and a tiled lean-to, or Geya, runs across the front. From its east end the Katahei wall sets off to enclose the east side of the plot.
It held the household's general goods, the furnishings and equipment of daily life. Where the other stores were given narrow briefs, trays in the west storehouse, dishes in the south, dolls in the doll storehouse, it makes sense that the one handling everything else should be the biggest.
Why It Was Registered
The criterion is contribution to the historic landscape. The Agency for Cultural Affairs describes a closed storehouse that, with the west storehouse, forms the view along the north side of the plot. Standing at the east end of the north row, where the wall begins, the Sono Family Residence East Storehouse is the hinge between the estate's north and east edges.
Its walls are plastered in white Shikkui all the way up to the eaves. Compared with the west and doll storehouses, which have boarding at the base, this is the more thoroughly fireproofed finish, and it was the one chosen for the building that held the family's goods.
Inside, both floors are boarded, and the ground floor is divided into east and west rooms. Above the east room the upper floor is left out, so the space rises the full height of the building. Whether this was for tall items or for hauling goods up and down, no published source says, but the double-height bay is the interior's defining feature.
What to Look For
Note the lean-to on the front. A small hongawarabuki roof projects from the south wall and gives a dry place in front of the door, which would have mattered whenever heavy goods were carried in or out.
The wall of the Sono Family Residence East Storehouse is white from the ground to the eaves. Because the west storehouse next door has timber boarding at the base, the difference in how high the plaster goes shows at a glance which of the pair was given the more costly finish.
Visiting
The East Storehouse is part of a private home, and neither the building nor the grounds are open (checked 24 September 2026). Its south front and lean-to face the inner yard behind the main house on Shinmachi-dori, so they cannot be seen from a public road.
Please do not peer into the property or point a camera over the walls.
Directions to the estate and general visiting conditions are on the Sono Family Residence page.
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Q&A
- What was stored in the Sono Family Residence East Storehouse?
- Household goods. The Sono family kept trays, dishes and dolls in separate storehouses, and the east storehouse, the largest, held everything else.
- Can you visit the Sono Family Residence East Storehouse?
- No. It is part of a private home and the building and grounds are closed. Its front faces the inner yard and cannot be seen from the street (checked 24 September 2026).
- How big is the Sono Family Residence East Storehouse?
- It is a two-storey dozo-zukuri storehouse with a building area of 62 square metres, the largest of the four storehouses on the estate.
- What is unusual about the interior of the Sono Family Residence East Storehouse?
- Both floors are boarded and the ground floor has east and west rooms, but above the east room there is no upper floor, leaving a double-height space.
- What does the Sono Family Residence East Storehouse look like from outside?
- The lime plaster runs right up to the eaves and a tiled lean-to projects across the front. Compared with the board-based west storehouse, it has the more fire-resistant finish.
Basic Information
| Name | Sono Family Residence East Storehouse (薗家住宅東土蔵) |
|---|---|
| Location | 691 Sono, Gobo City, Wakayama Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Building), Registration No. 30-0366 |
| Year Designated | Registered 2024/8/15 (Reiwa 6) |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | 2-storey dozo-zukuri storehouse, tiled roof, building area 62 square metres |
| Owner | Private owner |
| Public Access | Not open to the public (front not visible from the street) |
References
- Agency for Cultural Affairs Database: Sono Family Residence East Storehouse
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00015075
- Agency for Cultural Affairs Database: Sono Family Residence West Storehouse
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00015074
- Wakayama Prefectural Board of Education, Wakayama Cultural Heritage: Sono Family Residence
- https://wakayama-bunkazai.jp/bunkazai/bunkazai-spot-1041/
Last verified: 2026.09.24
