kudabashira 管柱

Also called daikagurabashira 太神楽柱. Pillars used to build two story structures whereby one pillar is erected on the first floor, and above an intervening horizontal beam, a second pillar is erected on the second floor. Kudabashira, although less heavy than the single corner pillars or those marking the interval of a bay, are heavier than the studs *mabashira 間柱 that form the framework to be walled. The kudabashira method of construction is common in many dwellings but is weaker, in the face of strong earthquakes or typhoons, than *tōshibashira 通し柱.