Also called tajūtō 多重塔. A generic term for pagodas that are from three to thirteen stories. An even number of stories is never used. Pagodas with a pent roof over an aisle *mokoshi 裳階, an extension of the ground floor, are sometimes mistaken for an even number of stories. For example, the Zen style *zenshūyō 禅宗様 at Anrakuji 安楽寺, Hakkaku sanjū-no-tō 八角三重塔 (1339) in Nagano Prefecture, and the famous Yakushiji Tōtō 薬師寺東塔 (early 8th century) in Nara, all look like six-storied pagodas because they have mokoshi on each of the three stories.
Three and five-storied pagodas are common, but the only thirteen-storied pagoda *jūsanjū-no-tō 十三重の塔 extant is at Danzan jinja 談山神社 (1532) in Nara. A seven-storied pagoda exists at Eisanji 栄山寺 (late Heian period) in Nara, and is made of stone. There is also a nine-storied stone pagoda extant at Jōshinji 浄心寺, also called Jōsenji 城泉寺 (1230) in Kumamoto Prefecture.
Yakushiji Tōtō 薬師寺東塔 (Nara)