Architecture

Cards (16)

  • 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.