A Shopfront Building on a Triangular Plot
The Yokoyama Sake Brewery Store (横山酒造店店舗, Yokoyama Shuzōten Tenpo) is a combined shop and house built around 1916 in Nanbu, Nanbu Town, Minamikoma District, Yamanashi Prefecture, and registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property (structure) on August 1, 2016 (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
The Agency for Cultural Affairs records a three-storey timber building with a tiled roof and a building area of 103 square metres, extended around 1953 and in 1955; registration number 19-0082. Yamanashi Prefecture gives the owner as a private individual.
From Two Storeys to Three
According to Yamanashi Prefecture, the Yokoyama business was founded in 1917 and the shop-house is said to date from 1916. It once brewed sake as well, and the brewery stands on a large plot just behind it to the west.
The building was first two storeys high, but when the road in front was widened around 1953 the plot and the front of the building were cut back, and a third storey was added to make up the floor space as the whole house was remodelled (Yamanashi Prefecture).
Why It Was Registered
The Yokoyama Sake Brewery Store was registered as a structure that would be difficult to reproduce. The Agency for Cultural Affairs describes a so-called signboard-style building on a triangular plot between streets, its walls finished in imitation stone to look like masonry, with a striking appearance.
Yamanashi Prefecture notes that despite repeated alterations the building has kept true, and that its plasterwork, on the walls and around the ceiling lights, is particularly fine.
What to Look For
According to Yamanashi Prefecture, the building fills its irregular triangular corner plot. The walls along the east and south streets are finished in imitation stone and topped with a curved parapet, and the third-floor hip-and-gable pantiled roof has Western-style touches such as moulded eaves.
The interior is mostly Japanese, with Western elements in places such as the ceilings (Agency for Cultural Affairs). Yamanashi Prefecture notes that the living room behind the shop shows the heavy posts and beams of a townhouse, while the rooms toward the back have sukiya-style details and a plastered corridor ceiling of Western design.
Visiting
The Yokoyama Sake Brewery Store is a private shop-house, and no interior opening has been announced. The exterior can be seen from the street; please respect the residents' privacy.
The address is 8255 Nanbu, Nanbu Town.
Q&A
- When was the Yokoyama Sake Brewery Store built?
- Around 1916, with extensions around 1953 and in 1955 (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
- Why does it have three storeys?
- When the road was widened around 1953 the front was cut back, and a third storey was added to make up the space (Yamanashi Prefecture).
- What is distinctive about its exterior?
- It fills a triangular plot and is a signboard-style building with imitation-stone walls (Agency for Cultural Affairs; Yamanashi Prefecture).
- Can I visit the Yokoyama Sake Brewery Store?
- It is a private shop-house, and no interior opening has been announced.
- When was the Yokoyama Sake Brewery Store registered?
- On August 1, 2016.
Basic Information
| Name | Yokoyama Sake Brewery Store (横山酒造店店舗) |
|---|---|
| Location | 8255 Nanbu, Nanbu Town, Minamikoma District, Yamanashi Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Structure) |
| Year Designated | Registered 2016/08/01 (Heisei 28) |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Three-storey timber building, tiled roof, building area 103 square metres |
| Owner | Private |
| Public Access | Private shop-house (no interior opening announced) |
References
- Yokoyama Sake Brewery Store (Database of National Cultural Properties, Agency for Cultural Affairs)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/101/00011132
- Yokoyama Sake Brewery Store (Yamanashi Prefecture cultural properties guide, Japanese)
- https://www.pref.yamanashi.jp/bunka/bunkazaihogo/bunkazai_data/yamanashinobunkazai_ty0078.html
Last verified: 2026.10.14