mairako 舞良子

Thin, parallel strips of wood about 2-3 cm wide and 1.8 cm thick affixed to the front and back of a door *mairado 舞良戸, made of a single wooden panel *wata-ita 綿板 and set in a frame *kamachi 框. Many doors are constructed with the strips placed horizontally, but some strips are placed vertically. If the strips are closely spaced the door is called shige mairado 繁舞良戸. If widely spaced, it is called *mabara mairado 疎舞良戸. Occasionally, the strips are grouped in twos or threes with wide spaces between the groups. This arrangement is called fukiyose mairado 吹寄舞良戸. The strips are normally attached to each side of the frame by a tenon and mortises (see *hozo ほぞ, *hozoana ほぞ穴) and the plank joint are sandwiched between. Another method is to cut the boards horizontally at desired intervals and set the strips in between so that one strip serves both sides of the door. Sometimes the strips on the outside of the door are chamfered.