rōkyō 廊橋

Also called hashirō 橋廊. A covered bridge, often with a resting place at the central point. Rōkyō can also be a passageway or corridor that resembles a bridge. It may also span part of a garden or bridge two wings of a building. It sometimes spans a pond and is arched in part or entirely. There are several extant examples: Kōdaiji Rōsenrō 高台寺楼船廊 (17th century), which incorporates a moon-viewing stand, tsukimidai 月見台; Higashi Honganji Shōseien Kaitōrō 東本願寺渉成園回棹廊 (17th century); Tōfukuji Tsūtenkyō 東福寺通天橋 (probably a 14th-century structure, last rebuilt 1951); and Heian Jingū Higashi Shin-en no Hashidono 平安神宮東神苑の橋殿 (19th century), all in Kyoto.