Architectural Character

ARCHITECTURAL CHARACTER

JAPAN

EARVIN MITCHELL B. SERENO

ARCHITECTURAL CHARACTER
 Japanese architecture was largely derived from China, but has its own special character
of minuteness in carving and decoration which gives it a graceful lightness and delicacy
of design, contrasting forcibly with that of Egypt and Rome, in which the great idea was
vastness of size and grandeur of proportion. This quality of refinement is introduced in their
timber constructions with such artistic skill as to render them akin to fine joinery. Japanese
architecture is specially notable for sloping and curved roofs, forming a contrast with that
of Egypt and India, where flat terrace roofs predominate. The projecting roofs,
ornamented with dragons and other fabulous monsters, are supported on a succession of
small brackets and are most striking features.
 has traditionally been typified by wooden structures, elevated slightly off the ground, with
tiled or thatched roofs. Sliding doors (fusuma) were used in place of walls, allowing the
internal configuration of a space to be customized for different occasions. People usually
sat on cushions or otherwise on the floor, traditionally; chairs and high tables were not
widely used until the 20th century. Since the 19th century, however, Japan has
incorporated much of Western, modern, and post-modern architecture into construction
and design, and is today a leader in cutting-edge architectural design and technology.
 The upper part of the roof is terminated by a gable placed vertically above the
end walls known as IRIMOYA GABLE, while lower part of the main roof is carried
round the ends of the building in hipped form. Roof coverings can be thatch,
shingles or tiles.
TEMPLES
BUDDHIST TEMPLES AT HURIUJI, NARRA AND NIKKO
• Is a Buddhist temple that was once one of the

powerful Seven Great Temples, in Ikaruga, Nara
Prefecture, Japan. Its full name is Hōryū
Gakumonji , or Learning Temple of the Flourishing
Law, the complex serving as both a seminary and
monastery.
• The grounds of Horyuji holds the world's oldest

surviving wooden buildings. It is Japan's First
World Cultural Heritage site. Horyuji contains over
2300 important cultural and historical structures
and items. About 190 of these have been
designated as National Treasures or Important
Cultural Properties. The temple and the halls in
this area are an amazing feat of woodwork
TEMPLE OF MIYO-JIN-KANDA, TOKYO JAPAN
• Is a Shinto shrine located in Chiyoda,

Tokyo, Japan. The shrine dates back 1,270
years, but the current structure was rebuilt
several times due to fire and earthquakes. It
is situated in one of the most expensive
estate areas of Tokyo. Kanda Shrine was an
important shrine to both the warrior class and
citizens of Japan, especially during the Edo
period, when shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu paid
his respects at Kanda Shrine.
THE SHINTO SHRINE OF KAMIJI, YASA, ISE
• A Shinto shrine (archaic: shinsha, meaning:

"place of the god") is a structure whose main
purpose is to house ("enshrine") one or
more Shinto kami. Its most important building
is used for the safekeeping of sacred objects,
and not for worship.
PAGODAS
TENNO-JI PAGODA
• is a Buddhist temple in Ōsaka, Japan. It is the
first Buddhist and oldest officially
administered temple in Japan, although the
temple buildings have been rebuilt over the
centuries.
• Prince Shōtoku invited three Korean Baekje carpenters,

and they constructed this temple in 593. Prince
Shōtoku was known for his profound Buddhist faith
when Buddhism was not widespread in Japan. Most of
the present structures are from when the temple was
last completely rebuilt in 1963. One of the members
involved in the initial construction of the temple in the
6th century later established a firm Kongō Gumi,
specialized in temple and shrine buildings over
centuries.
KOFUKUJI PAGODA, NARA

powerful Seven Great Temples, in the city of
Nara, Japan. The temple is the national
headquarters of the Hossō school and is one of
the eight Historic Monuments of Ancient
Nara inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage
List.
• Kofukuji was one of the "Four Great Temples" of

the Nara period (710-794). Founded in 669
AD by a member of the Fujiwara clan to pray
for the clan leader to recover from illness,
Kofukuji became the head temple of the Hosso
sect of Buddhism
YAKUSHIJI PAGODA
• Yakushi-ji is one of the most famous imperial

and ancient Buddhist temples in Japan, that
was once one of the powerful Seven Great
Temples, located in Nara. The temple is the
headquarters of the Hossō school of
Japanese Buddhism. Yakushi-ji is one of the
sites that are collectively inscribed as
a UNESCO World Heritage Site, under the name
of "Historic Monuments of Ancient Nara.
• The main object of veneration, Yakushi Nyorai,

also named "The Medicine Buddha", was one
of first Buddhist Deities to arrive in Japan from
China in 680, and gives the temple its name.
HOKIJI PAGODA
• is a Buddhist temple in
Okamoto, Ikaruga, Nara Prefecture, Japan.
The temple's honorary sangō prefix is
"Kōhonzan” although it is rarely used. The
temple was constructed to
honor Avalokitesvara, and an 11-faced statue
of the goddess is the primary object of worship
in the temple. Hokki-ji is often considered to be
one of the seven great temples founded
by Prince Shōtoku, however, the temple was
not completed until some decades after his
death. In 1993, it was registered as
an UNESCO World Heritage Site as one of
the Buddhist Monuments in the Hōryū-ji Area.
HORIUJI PAGODA

powerful Seven Great Temples,
in Ikaruga, Nara Prefecture, Japan. Its full name
is Hōryū Gakumonji , or Learning Temple of the
Flourishing Law, the complex serving as both a
seminary and monastery.
• The temple's pagoda is widely acknowledged

to be one of the oldest wooden buildings
existing in the world, underscoring Hōryū-ji's
place as one of the most celebrated temples
in Japan

Architectural Character

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ARCHITECTURAL CHARACTER

EARVIN MITCHELL B. SERENO

• Is a Buddhist temple that was once one of the

• The grounds of Horyuji holds the world's oldest

• Is a Shinto shrine located in Chiyoda,

• A Shinto shrine (archaic: shinsha, meaning:

• Prince Shōtoku invited three Korean Baekje carpenters,

• Is a Buddhist temple that was once one of the

• Kofukuji was one of the "Four Great Temples" of

• Yakushi-ji is one of the most famous imperial

• The main object of veneration, Yakushi Nyorai,

• Is a Buddhist temple that was once one of the

• The temple's pagoda is widely acknowledged

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