soban 礎盤

Also sōban 双盤. A cushion or footing stone with a concave upper part and a convex lower part placed between the bottom of a pillar and the base stone *soseki 礎石. Soban were introduced during the 13th century as a part of the Zen style *zenshūyō 禅宗様. The cushion or footing is sometimes made of wood. Early soban were not very thick and did not project too far beyond the girth of the pillar. Later soban were thicker and occasionally the base and cushion stones were carved as a single piece. During the Edo period, some soban were set on angled or box-like base stones. Decoration was sometimes carved into the top. Examples of this type can be found at Manpukuji 萬福寺 in Kyoto. and at Sōfukuji 崇福寺 in Nagasaki Prefecture.