| Title | Contains Image(s) | Description | Keywords |
|---|---|---|---|
| a-un 阿吽 | ✓ | Sk: a-hum. 'A' is the sound of the first letter of the Sanskrit alphabet and is pronounced with the mouth open.… |
Art History, Sculpture |
| Abōkyū 阿房宮 | Ch: Efang Gong. The Efang Palace. A residence for concubines built by the first emperor of the Qin dynasty, Qin Shi Huangdi… |
Art History, Painting | |
| aboshigaki 網干垣 | Lit. hanging net fence. A generic name for a bamboo fence whose surface resembles the diagonal weave of a fishing net. Often… |
Architecture, Gardens | |
| abumigawara 鐙瓦 | Lit. stirrup tile. An ancient name for *nokimarugawara 軒丸瓦. Also called… |
Architecture, Roofing Tiles | |
| abuna-e あぶな絵 | Erotic or suggestive pictures. Derived from the word "abunai あぶない" meaning dangerous or risqué. More explicit works… |
Art History, Painting | |
| aburidashi 炙出 | Also written あぶりだし. Hidden pictures that are painted or printed on paper using rice-wine, alum, or citrus juice, which then… |
Art History, Painting | |
| agedatamiza 上畳座 | A raised platform with a *tatami 畳 mat on top, often having a brightly… |
Art History, Sculpture | |
| agedo 揚げ戸 | ✓ | Lit. push-up door. A variety of upward-opening door or shutter used during the Edo period in urban merchant and artisan… |
Architecture, Folk Dwellings |
| Agemaki 揚巻 | Art History, Painting | ||
| Agemaki 総角 | ✓ | Lit. locks of hair/four cornered; "an elaborate three-looped knot, it also designates a young girl's coiffure" -… |
Art History, Painting |
| agemise 揚見世 | Also called *battari shōgi ばったり床几 or age-en あげ縁. |
Architecture, Folk Dwellings | |
| agesage shōji 上下障子 | ✓ | Also called *suriage shōji 摺上障子. A sliding door frame covered with… |
Architecture, General Terms |
| agesudo 揚簀戸 | Lit. raised lattice door. A type of small middle gate or wicket *kido 木戸, used to… |
Architecture, Tea Houses | |
| agetekiri 上げ手切 | A firebox that is cut into the upper part of the mat next to the host's mat *temae… |
Architecture, Tea Houses | |
| agetsuchimon 上土門 | ✓ | Also written 揚土門; also called azuchimon 安土門. A gate with a mud roof. To support the roof the gate has two pillars… |
Architecture, Gates |
| ageutsushi あげ写し | A method used by Japanese painters to produce a copy *mosha 模写, and in that way… |
Art History, Painting | |
| ageya 揚屋 | Also called ageya jaya 揚屋茶屋. A type of town house *machiya 町家, found… |
Architecture, Folk Dwellings | |
| agokaki 腮欠 | ✓ | Lit. chin gap. One of many types of cogging joints. The joint is used to attach a horizontal timber to the face of a square… |
Architecture, Joints |
| Agyō 阿形 | A statue of a figure with its mouth open. Usually seen on one of a pair of guardian kings *Niō… |
Art History, Sculpture | |
| ai-e 藍絵 | Woodblock prints *ukiyo-e 浮世絵 colored in shades of indigo blue *… |
Art History, Painting | |
| ai 藍 | Indigo. A plant of the polygonacede family from whose stems and leaves comes a blue dye and pigment for painting. Produced… |
Art History, Painting | |
| ai-no-ma 相の間 | 1 A space between two main structures or two points. 2 In the case of two buildings… |
Architecture, Shrines, Folk Dwellings | |
| aiban 間判 | Lit. intermediate format size. *Ukiyo-e 浮世絵 prints of two sizes, both… |
Art History, Painting | |
| aidaruki 間垂木 | ✓ | A treatment of the underside of a roof, with thin bamboo placed between rafters under the roof *… |
Architecture, Tea Houses |
| aigaki 相欠 | ✓ | Also written 合欠. A lap or halving joint. When used at a corner, it is called a corner lap joint. When used where two members… |
Architecture, Joints |
| aigami 藍紙 | Also aobanagami 青花紙, tsuyukusairo 露草色. A blue pigment extracted from the dayflower tsuyukusa 露草… |
Art History, Painting | |
| aijakuri 合決 | A shiplap joint or halving joint. Also written 相決. |
Architecture, Joints | |
| aikugi 合釘 | ✓ | Also kurekugi 呉釘, kirikugi 切釘. A straight nail with both ends pointed. It is made of wood, bamboo, iron,… |
Architecture, General Terms |
| Aikuōzan 阿育王山 | Ch: Ayuwangshan. Mt. Asoka. A mountain near Hangzhou (Jp: Kōshū 杭州) in Zhejiang (Jp: Sekkō 浙江) Province associated… |
Art History, Painting | |
| aioi 相生 | Lit. growing together. The technique of planting two trees so that they grow together. Variations include: the same kind of… |
Architecture, Gardens | |
| aioibashi 相生橋 | Lit. twin bridges. Side-by-side bridges constructed over a garden stream. Usually one bridge is larger than the other in… |
Architecture, Gardens | |
| aiorekugi 合折釘 | ✓ | Also called oreaikugi 折合釘 or mageorekugi 曲折釘. A type of double-pointed iron nail, square in section, and… |
Architecture, General Terms |
| aiyokoya-no-sama 合横矢の狭間 | Also aiyokoya 合横矢. Lit. loophole for opposing lateral arrows. A loophole constructed in a castle wall or rampart to… |
Architecture, Castles | |
| Aizen mandara 愛染曼荼羅 | A variety of *besson mandara 別尊曼荼羅, or *… |
Art History, Iconography | |
| Aizen Myōō 愛染明王 | Also Aizen'ō 愛染王. Sk: Ragaraja. A deity unknown in India. The word 'raga' originally referred to the… |
Art History, Iconography | |
| Aizendō 愛染堂 | An octagonal hall *hakkaku endō 八角円堂, at Sanshōji 三聖寺 in… |
Architecture, Buildings, Structures | |
| aizuri 藍摺 | Also *ai-e 藍絵 or aizuri-e 藍摺絵. A type of woodblock print *… |
Art History, Painting | |
| ajari 阿闍梨 | Sk: acarya. Teacher or master. A title conferred on an eminent priest who guides his pupils and sets a good example… |
Art History, Iconography | |
| ajiro 網代 | ✓ | A woven or plaited wickerwork mat made of strips of bamboo sheathing, thin strips of cryptomeria, straight-grained… |
Architecture, Tea Houses |
| aka-e 赤絵 | Also akazuri-e 赤摺絵 and *hōsō-e 疱瘡絵. Woodblock prints produced in the… |
Art History, Painting | |
| akacha-iro 赤茶色 | Lit. red brown color. The reddish brown or russet color on the ancient smooth, lipless tiles *… |
Architecture, Decorations | |
| Akadōji 赤童子 | Lit. red youth. Also often called Kasuga Akadōji 春日赤童子. A mysterious human figure said to have appeared on a rock… |
Art History, Iconography | |
| akahon 赤本 | Lit. red book. Forms of illustrated popular fiction, *kusazōshi 草双紙, with… |
Art History, Painting | |
| akaiya 閼伽井屋 | ✓ | Also called wakasaiya 若狭井屋. A small structure that enclosed two wells from which water was drawn to serve the… |
Architecture, Buildings, Structures |
| akakohon 赤小本 | Lit. small red book. A type of *akahon 赤本. Woodblock printed picture books with… |
Art History, Painting | |
| akane-iro 茜色 | Crimson; madder red. Known as *sohi そひ in the Nara and Heian periods. Originally… |
Art History, Painting | |
| akari shōji 明障子 | ✓ | One type of *shōji 障子. A translucent screen or sliding door made by pasting… |
Architecture, General Terms |
| Akashi 明石 | ✓ | A pictorial subject based on Chapter 13 of Genji monogatari 源氏物語 (The Tale of Genji). In the third month,… |
Art History, Painting |
| akazumon 不開門 | Also called akazu-no-mon 不開門 or ikanmon 偉鑒門. Lit. closed gate. Legend has it that after Emperor Kazan 花山 (… |
Architecture, Gates | |
| aki 明 | Also written 空; kūgeki 空隙, ma 間. Lit. empty, gap, space. The space between two structural parts. For… |
Architecture, General Terms | |
| akijiro 明城 | Also written 空城. An empty castle or fortress from which the lord and/or his defensive garrison have withdrawn, either… |
Architecture, Castles | |
| akikusa 秋草 | Lit. autumn plants. Often rendered as autumn grasses, a common design motif in decorative arts and painting. Most frequently… |
Art History, Painting | |
| Akita Ranga 秋田蘭画 | Lit. Dutch paintings, ranga 蘭画 of Akita. A Japanese work in a European style produced by the earliest school of… |
Art History, Painting | |
| akkon 圧痕 | Evidence left on load bearing members by beams *hari 梁, *… |
Architecture, General Terms | |
| akobujō 阿古父尉 | Also written as 阿瘤尉. A Noh mask *nōmen 能面, representing a dignified, old man who… |
Art History, Sculpture | |
| Akutagawa 芥川 | A small river running through Takatsuki 高槻 City, Osaka (formerly Settsu 摂津 Province). Famous from Episode 6 of Ise… |
Art History, Painting | |
| akuzuri-e 悪摺絵 | A woodblock print designed and privately published to expose a secret indiscretion, then distributed to the home and friends… |
Art History, Painting | |
| Ama 案摩 | A dance piece in *bugaku 舞楽, as well as the mask *… |
Art History, Sculpture | |
| ama 尼 | Lit. nun. A character in kyōgen 狂言 plays, represented by a masked figure *… |
Art History, Sculpture | |
| ama 天 | 1 A rack with an open lattice frame of timber or bamboo, suspended from the main crossbeams *… |
Architecture, Folk Dwellings | |
| amado 雨戸 | 1 Wooden shutters constructed at the various openings of a building. They slide out from a special storage… |
Architecture, General Terms | |
| amadoi 雨樋 | A gutter used to carry rainwater from the eave-ends to a downspout or hanging chain and thence to the ground. This method… |
Architecture, General Terms | |
| amagumi 疎組 | ✓ | Also read mabaragumi; also written 阿麻組 amagumi. A bracket complex *… |
Architecture, General Terms |
| amajimai 雨仕舞 | Weather stripping, flashing, a rain guard, or any device used to prevent leaks or deflect rainwater. A hōju roban… |
Architecture, General Terms | |
| amakatsura-ishi 雨葛石 | A curbstone that runs horizontally along the top edge of a podium *danjōzumi… |
Architecture, General Terms | |
| amaochi 雨落 | ✓ | Also called amadari 雨垂り and amadareochi 雨垂れ落ち. The place on the ground, directly below the eaves,… |
Architecture, General Terms |
| amashōji 雨障子 | Also called aburashōji 油障子. A type of translucent paper-covered window found most often in tea ceremony houses *… |
Architecture, General Terms | |
| ameyū 飴釉 | A variation of *tenmokuyū 天目釉. A yellow-brown or liver-brown glaze… |
Art History, Crafts | |
| Ami-ha 阿弥派 | A school of painting that arose in Kyoto during the 15th century, separate from the dominant painting ateliers of the Zen 禅… |
Art History, Painting | |
| Amida 阿弥陀 | Also Amida Nyorai 阿弥陀如来. Buddha of Infinite Light (Sk: Amitabha, Jp: Muryōkō 無量光), also Buddha of Infinite… |
Art History, Iconography | |
| Amida jōdo hensō 阿弥陀浄土変相 | Lit. Amida Pure Land Transformation Scene. A large scale depiction of the Pure Land Paradise, gokuraku jōdo 極楽浄土 of… |
Art History, Iconography | |
| Amida keka 阿弥陀悔過 | One of a group of chanted prayers used to express penitence to various Buddhist deities. Prayers of repentance to *… |
Art History, Sculpture | |
| Amida kubon-in 阿弥陀九品印 | Also read Amida kuhon-in. Lit. Mudras of the nine grades of Amida. The Pure Land jōdo 浄土 into which *… |
Art History, Sculpture | |
| Amida sanzon 阿弥陀三尊 | Lit. Amida triad. A triad consisting of the Buddha *Amida 阿弥陀 (Sk:Amitabha/Amitayus) at… |
Art History, Iconography | |
| amidadō 阿弥陀堂 | A hall in a Buddhist temple dedicated to *Amida 阿弥陀 (Sk: Amitabha), the Buddha… |
Architecture, Buildings, Structures | |
| amigaki 網垣 | Lit. wattle fence. A common type of low fence with a framework of whole and split bamboo into which thin boards or reeds are… | Architecture, Gardens | |
| amigasa 編笠 | ✓ | One type of Korean style tea bowl *chawan 茶碗, with white brush strokes on the… |
Architecture, Tea Houses |
| amigasamon 編笠門 | Also written 網笠門. A wattle-hood gate. A simple gate used as a middle gate in a garden *… |
Architecture, Tea Houses | |
| ananai 麻生 | An ancient word for *ashiba 足場 or ashishiro 足代, scaffolding made of… |
Architecture, General Terms | |
| anazukikanna 穴突鉋 | A grooving plane. A plane used in carpentry to make a groove. For a groove less than 15 mm wide a small anazukikanna… |
Architecture, Tools | |
| Anchin mandara 安鎮曼荼羅 | A variety of *besson mandara 別尊曼荼羅 used for performing the anchinhō… |
Art History, Iconography | |
| andae 安陀衣 | The simplest form of robe that a Buddhist priest wears when he is either resting or at work. The andae is one of… |
Art History, Sculpture | |
| andon-e 行灯絵 | Paintings on paper lanterns that adorn temple and shrine precincts and the gates of residences during a festival. Generally… | Art History, Painting | |
| anesama-e 姉様絵 | Woodblock printed sheets designed by lesser-known *ukiyo-e 浮世絵 artists… |
Art History, Painting | |
| Annamiyō 安阿弥様 | A style of Buddhist statuary originated by Kaikei 快慶 (?-1189-1221-?), a devout believer in the Pure Land sect, Jōdokyō … |
Art History, Sculpture | |
| ao-ishi 青石 | Lit. blue stone. A generic name for a blue green stone of chlorite schist much used in gardens from the Muromachi period… |
Architecture, Gardens | |
| aohon 青本 | An Edo period illustrated book of popular fiction *kusazōshi 草双紙, with a… |
Art History, Painting | |
| Aoi 葵 | Pictorial subject matter based on "Heartvine" Aoi, Chapter 9 of Genji monogatari 源氏物語 (The Tale of… |
Art History, Painting | |
| aokin 青金 | Lit. blue gold. An alloy of gold or silver which contains impurities that create a color with a bluish tinge. In painting,… |
Art History, Painting | |
| aoni 青丹 | 1 An old name for the pigment *iwa-rokushō … |
Art History, Painting | |
| aori hafu 障泥破風 | Lit. curved bargeboard. An archaic term for *chidori haru 千鳥破風, a… |
Architecture, General Terms | |
| aori-ita 障泥板 | ✓ | Also read afuri-ita; irakaōi 甍覆. 1 A thick board attached to the edge of a veranda… |
Architecture, General Terms |
| aoshibagaki 青柴垣 | Lit. fresh brushwood fence. A simple type of low fence made out of fresh brushwood. Popular in ancient times, when it was… |
Architecture, Gardens | |
| ara-ishi 荒石 | Lit. rough stone. A generic term for rough, unprocessed rock in the form in which it is found or quarried. Also read *… |
Architecture, General Terms | |
| arabori 荒彫 | Lit. rough cutting. The second stage in the making of a wooden statue. The first stage is to cut a large block of timber the… |
Art History, Sculpture | |
| aragaki 荒垣 | ✓ | Lit. rough fence. A general term to designate any kind of crude fence with widely spaced posts and crossbars. It is also… |
Architecture, General Terms |
| arakabe 荒壁 | The first layer of mud plaster applied to the lath *komai 小舞, that… |
Architecture, General Terms | |
| arare koboshi 霰零し | Lit. scattered hail stones. A method of paving *tama-ishijiki 玉石敷, in… |
Architecture, Tea Houses | |
| arare kuzushi 霰崩 | ✓ | Simplified hail stone style of round-stone paving *tama-ishijiki… |
Architecture, Tea Houses |
| ararebai 霰灰 | ✓ | A type of coarse ash used in a tea ceremony brazier. Usually it is covered with makibai 蒔灰, a finer ash with a… |
Architecture, Tea Houses |
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