JAANUS / misegura 店蔵

misegura　店蔵

KEY WORD :　architecture / storehouses

A shop constructed using the fireproof system of construction known as *dozou-zukuri 土蔵造 or *kura-zukuri 蔵造. The misegura is believed to have developed in Edo, probably in the years following the fire which destroyed the city in 1657. An early example, for which some records survive, was the Daikokuya 大黒屋 (1662). However, it was not until after the shogunate government began to encourage construction of storehouses kura 蔵 in the Kyouho 享保 era (1716-35) that misegura became numerous. From Edo, the style spread to other towns of the Kantou 関東 region. Kawagoe 川越, Saitama prefecture, has one of the oldest surviving examples, the Oosawa 大沢 House (1792), and also has a number of late 19c examples. Misegura not only dominated the streetscape of towns throughout the Kantou in the late 19c, but spread north as far as Hokkaidou, and even gained a foothold in the Kansai 関西 region (the earliest misegura in Osaka is said to have been erected in around 1850). Misegura were usually two story structures directly overlooking the street. Most had their entrance on the non-gabled side of the building (see *hirairi 平入). The shop was on the ground floor, which had a tiled veranda *hisashi 廂 , and often a storage pit, anagura 穴蔵, beneath. The entire shopfront could be closed with heavy fireproof plastered sliding shutters *tsuchido 土戸. Fireproof plastered double-hinged swing doors *kannonbiraki tobira 観音開扉, opened the rear of the shop to the rest of the plot behind. The misegura could thus be sealed from front and rear in case of fire. The upper floor was used for storage, as accommodation for employees, or as a reception room *zashiki 座敷, for entertaining guests or customers. The upper floor facade had either plastered latticework *koushi 格子, with fireproof sliding shutters or small windows closed with kannonbiraki tobira, usually placed symmetrically. For the eaves, a round eaves purlin * dashigeta 出桁, and an inverted stepped profile, nokijabara 軒蛇腹, were preferred to the thick plaster under the eaves *hachimaki 鉢巻, found in the conventional mud-wall storehouses. A white plaster finish was common in the 18c but in Kantou black plaster became the dominant fashion by the latter half of the 19c. The roof was usually gabled *kirizuma yane 切妻屋根 and tiled with pan tiles *sangawara 桟瓦. The built-up box ridge *hakomune 箱棟, with large goblin-mask tiles *onigawara 鬼瓦 and oversized scroll-like plaster decoration *kagemori 影盛, were very prominent features, especially in later examples. Misegura were an expensive symbol of a merchant's wealth.

a) *kagemori 影盛　b) *hakomune 箱棟　c) *dashibari 出梁
d) nokijabara 軒蛇腹　e) *kannonbiraki tobira 観音開扉　f) menuridai 目塗台

Hara 原 house in Kawagoe 川越 (Saitama)

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*mise 店　

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