mitsubana gegyo 三花懸魚

Lit. "three-flowered bargeboard pendant." A decorative gable pendant *gegyo 懸魚 with a symmetrical three-fold pattern around the base. The mitsubana gegyo is thought to have originated in the Kamakura period, and was first used on Zen style architecture *zenshūyō 禅宗様. During the Edo period it was also used on shoin style residences *shoin 書院. Good examples can be seen on Tōfukuji *Sanmon 東福寺三門 (1405), and Nijō-jō Ni-no-maru Goten 二条城二の丸御殿 (1625-6) both in Kyoto.