Izumiya

Japanese: 泉屋 - いずみや

...the predecessor of the Sumitomo zaibatsu. The Sumitomo family was founded by the second generation Tomomochi as a copper merchant called Izumiya in Kyoto, and from the 1620s based in Osaka, solidifying the foundations of the family business of copper refining and export, and importing foreign goods. During the reign of the third generation Tomonobu and the fourth generation Tomoyoshi, the family operated various copper mines, established branches in Edo and Nagasaki, and expanded into the money exchange and foreign currency business, reaching a period of prosperity. They also owned dozens of houses and properties as collateral for their businesses, and managed fields such as Yamamoto Shinden, which received an influx of pawned land. At the end of the Edo period, they developed new fields for rice near the Besshi copper mine. ...

From Japan-Korea Trade

…In addition, the export price was set at 100,000 jin from around the 13th year of the Shōtoku era, and Tsushima Domain attempted to increase it, citing the minting of Korean coins. Copper was designated as an export item not only for private trade but also for public trade, and as it was designated as rough copper (refined at the mine), in order to ensure a consistent quality, they purchased it exclusively from Fukiya Izumiya Kichizaemon (Sumitomo family) in Osaka. Izumiya was also the manager of the powerful Besshi copper mine at the time, and the Besshi rough copper designated for public trade was especially known as Kanpindo (quality copper), and was widely used for minting Korean coins, weapons, copperware, plates, Buddhist altar implements, etc. …

From [Besshi Copper Mine]

...This type of deposit is called the Besshi type copper deposit, and is represented by the mines known in the Sanbagawa crystalline schist group, such as Kune (Shizuoka Prefecture), Sazare, Ookuki (Ehime Prefecture), and Shirataki (Kochi Prefecture). [Umetaro Yamaguchi]
［History］
In 1691, the year after copper ore was discovered in the Besshiyama village area of the Edo shogunate, the mine was opened under the management of Izumiya (Sumitomo) of Osaka. The main conditions for operation were: (1) 13% of the miners' share of the copper produced was to be paid as copper tax, and this was to be paid in silver, (2) charcoal kilns were to be paid as tax, and 30 silver coins were to be paid per 10 charcoal kilns, (3) the contract period was five years, and (4) miscellaneous trees, rotten trees, and standing dead trees from around the copper mine were to be used for pit wood and firewood.

*Some of the terminology that mentions "Izumiya" is listed below.

Source | Heibonsha World Encyclopedia 2nd Edition | Information

Japanese:

…住友財閥の前身。住友家は，2代友以（とももち）が京都で銅商泉屋を興し，1620年代から大坂を本拠として銅の精錬･輸出と外国品の輸入という家業の基礎を固め，3代友信，4代友芳の時代に諸銅山の稼行，江戸･長崎出店の設置，両替･為替業へ進出して，隆盛期を迎えた。また事業上の担保として家屋敷数十ヵ所を所有するとともに質地の流れ込んだ山本新田などの田畑を経営し，幕末には別子銅山の近辺で飯米用の新田を開発した。…

【日朝貿易】より

…そのうえ，13年(正徳3)ごろより輸出定額を10万斤とされたため，対馬藩は朝鮮国の鋳銭を理由に増額をはかった。銅は，私貿易だけでなく公貿易の輸出定品とされており，それも荒銅(山元で精錬したもの)があてられていたことから，品質一定のため，大坂の吹屋泉屋吉左衛門(住友家)から一手に買い付けていた。泉屋は当時有力な別子銅山の経営者でもあり，公貿易に指定された別子荒銅はとくに看品銅（かんぴんどう）と称され，朝鮮の鋳銭原料や兵器，銅器皿，仏具などに広く用いられた。…

【別子銅山】より

…久根（くね）(静岡県)，佐々連（さざれ），大久喜（おおくき）(以上愛媛県)，白滝（しらたき）(高知県)など三波川結晶片岩類中に知られる諸鉱山を代表して，この型の鉱床は別子型銅鉱床と呼ばれる。【山口梅太郎】
［沿革］
　幕領の別子山村域に銅鉱が発見された翌1691年，大坂の泉屋(住友)の経営下に開坑した。稼行のおもな条件は，(1)出銅のうち山師取り分の1割3分を運上銅とし，これを代銀納する，(2)炭釜（すみがま）運上とし，炭釜10口につき1ヵ年銀30枚上納する，(3)年季は5ヵ年，(4)坑木･薪炭用に銅山付近の雑木，朽木，立枯木を使用するなどである。…

※「泉屋」について言及している用語解説の一部を掲載しています。

出典｜株式会社平凡社世界大百科事典第２版について | 情報

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