Aizumi Town Historical Museum Ai-no-Yakata

Ai-no-Yakata is a museum housed in a former merchant residence dedicated to indigo production and dyeing traditions. The building contains historical processing equipment, cultivation tools, and displays explaining the methods used in the Tokushima region.

The museum was established when a descendant of the Okumura family, long involved in indigo trading, donated the property to Aizumi in 1987. The building itself dates from an era when indigo was one of the most valuable trade goods in the region.

The residence shows how wealthy merchant families lived and worked during the peak years of indigo trade. The rooms are arranged to display how family members combined indigo dyeing with commerce in their daily lives.

The museum is reached on foot through Aizumi's old town area, and welcomes visitors during morning and afternoon hours. On-site you can participate in traditional dyeing experiences to see how the work was actually done.

The museum preserves two separate buildings recognized as national cultural property sites that reflect the indigo-dyeing craft practiced by the Okumura family. These structures offer rare examples of merchant houses from the period when indigo dye was an important export product.