Keywords
Architecture
General Terms
A term used in all parts of Japan in the Edo period, for a straight shelf *tana 棚. Built into the shelving recess *tokowaki 床脇, adjacent to the decorative alcove *tokonoma 床の間 in the formal guest reception room *zashiki 座敷 of vernacular houses *minka 民家. Unlike the more conventional staggered shelves *chigaidana 違い棚, the ichimonji dana was a single unbroken shelf extending the full width of the recess. The name, which is derived from its resemblance to the Chinese character for one, ichi 一 , was often extended to refer to the entire shelving recess.