Architecture

• During the prehistoric times, there were no extant architectural sites and styles. Architecture was even hardly mentioned even in the oldest Japanese texts.
• Houses in prehistoric times

  • Thatched roofs
  • Dirt floors
  • Wooden floors used in regions with high temperatures and humidity
• When communities grew, so were the residential houses especially of the local ruling family and even rice storage houses that were in Sannai-Maruyama in Aomori and the Yoshinogari in Saga.
• Tombs were constructed when a centralized administrative system was developed. The most remarkable was the Daisen-kofun which was the designated tomb of the Emperor Nintoku.
• Oldest surviving wooden buildings

  • Found at Horyu temple in the Southwest of Nara during the Asuka period
  • Constructed in the early 7th century
  • 41 separate buildings
• In the 8th century, temple building was focused at Todaiji in Nara. Todaiji is said to be the most ambitious religious complex erected in the early centuries of Buddhism in Japan.
• Japanese Buddhist architecture during Heian period

  • Adopted the stupa in its Chinese form as a pagoda
  • Temples erected in mountains
  • Cypress-bark roofs replaced ceramic tiles
  • Wood planks used instead of earthen floors
• Shinden zukuri


  Palatial or aristocratic mansions built during the Heian period especially in the 10th century
• Elegant aesthetic pursuits in Fujiwara period

  • Amida Hall
  • Phoenix Hall (Ho-o-do) of the Byodoin
• Architectural styles after Kamakura period


  • Simple and sturdy
  • Mixture of shinden-zukuri and turrets or trenches in samurai houses
  • Buke-zukuri (house for military family) similar to shinden-zukuri but made simple and practical
• It was during the Kamakura period that the tea ceremony was developed and practiced. The tea house was, therefore, constructed following a rustic style cottage that emphasized natural materials such as bark-covered logs and woven straw.
• Architectural styles during Azuchi-momoyama period


  • Castle and shoin developed as responses to militaristic climate
  • Himeji Castle (White Heron Castle) was a defensive structure
  • Ohiroma of Nijo Castle was a shoin, serving as a reception hall and private study area
• Architectural styles during Edo period

  • Simplified due to frequent fires in Edo city
  • Necessary for easy reconstruction
• It was in the 19th century when Japan was exposed to Western culture that they were able to blend Japanese styles with European architectural styles.
• Giyofu architecture


  Pseudo-Western-style architecture, resembled a western style but considered Japanese design techniques
• Giyofu architecture was common during the Meiji period but eventually disappeared when Western techniques became prevalent.