Lit. stone bridge. A general term for a garden bridge made of stones, typically granite or schist. Ishibashi may be made of cut stones *kiri-ishibashi 切石橋 or stones left in their natural state. They may be functional or purely decorative, and they may span water or may cross the dry stream *karenagare 枯流 of a dry landscape *karesansui 枯山水 garden. In the Heian period, large, arched bridges of cut stones were used primarily for functional purposes. In the Muromachi period, the rise of aesthetic values derived from Chinese Song dynasty culture led to the use of uncut stones in one, two, and three plank bridges in pond and stream gardens *chisen kaiyūshiki teien 池泉回遊式庭園. Good examples can be seen in the dry gardens at Tenryūji 天竜寺 and Jishōji 慈照寺, Kyoto. In dry gardens such as the Taizōin 退蔵院 at Myōshinji 妙心寺 and Daisen'in 大仙院 at Daitokuji 大徳寺, Kyoto, smaller uncut stones were used as "bridges" to increase the illusion of a dry stream "flowing" beneath them. In the large and visually powerful gardens of the Momoyama period, large cut and uncut stones were frequently used in both pond gardens, Ni no maru 二の丸 at Nijōjō 二条城 and Sanbōin 三宝院 at Daigoji 醍醐寺, Kyoto; and in dry gardens Nishi Honganji 本願寺, Kyoto, and Kyū Tokushimajō Omotegoten teien 旧徳島城表御殿庭園 in Tokushima Prefecture. In the Edo period traditional ishibashi continued to be used, but some innovations can also be seen. For instance, at Kenrokuen 兼六園 in Ishikawa Prefecture, a stone bridge is arranged so as to suggest a flock of geese flying in formation. Or, at Sentō Gosho 仙洞御所 in Kyoto, there is frequent mixing of cut and uncut stones in the many bridges.