| Title | Contains Image(s) | Description | Keywords |
|---|---|---|---|
| sabi さび | Also written 寂. |
Art History, Architecture, General Terms | |
| sabi-urushi 錆漆 | Also sabi 錆. A paste made by mixing powdered burnt clay *tonoko 砥の粉… |
Art History, Sculpture | |
| sabibori サビ彫 | When woodblocks are being carved to reproduce pages of handwritten characters, sometimes the point of a small knife will be… |
Art History, Painting | |
| sabikabe 錆壁 | The finishing coat on a wall that consists of iron rust mixed with clay or plaster. Originally, old nails were boiled, and… | Architecture, General Terms | |
| sadōguchi 茶道口 | ✓ | Also written 茶堂口, 茶頭口; also chatateguchi 茶立口, or *katteguchi 勝手口.… |
Architecture, Tea Houses |
| sagabon 嵯峨本 | Also called kōetsubon 光悦本 or suminokurabon 角倉本, although some scholars consider each of these names to… |
Art History, Painting | |
| Sagano 嵯峨野 | A pictorial subject of an area in the western part of Kyoto city, famous for autumn grasses and singing insects. Besides… |
Art History, Painting | |
| sagefuri 下振 | Also called shōjiki 正直. A plumb line with a plumb bob, furiko 振子, at the lower end. The plumb bob is a… |
Architecture, Tools | |
| sagekiri 下げ切 | A little used placement of the firebox *ro 炉, in a tea ceremony room *… |
Architecture, Tea Houses | |
| sagiashi 鷺足 | Also sagi-no-ashi. Lit. "heron's leg." A type of long, curved leg found on a Chinese style desk, tōzukue… |
Architecture, Decorations | |
| sahari 響銅 | Also written 佐波理. An alloy of copper containing less than ten percent tin, lead and zinc and of a pale yellowish color. It… |
Art History, Crafts | |
| saiben rengemon 細弁蓮華文 | Lit. "narrow petal lotus motif." A motif with as many as twelve or sixteen narrow petals found on some circular pendant… |
Architecture, Roofing Tiles | |
| Saiendō 西円堂 | ✓ | An octagonal hall at Hōryūji 法隆寺, Nara, which was destroyed by a typhoon in 1050. The structure was rebuilt in 1250. It is… |
Architecture, Buildings, Structures |
| Saigyō monogatari-e 西行物語絵 | Paintings based on Saigyō monogatari 西行物語 (The Tale of Saigyō), a fictionalization of the poet-priest… |
Art History, Painting | |
| saijō 斎場 | 1 An area temporarily purified to erect temporary buildings and facilities for performing the *… |
Architecture, Shrines | |
| saikakubon 西鶴本 | The name for a group of *ukiyo zōshi 浮世草子 (books of the floating world;… |
Art History, Painting | |
| saikan sanyū 歳寒三友 | Ch: suihan sanyou. Lit. "three friends of wintery seasons." A painting theme featuring pine matsu 松, plum… |
Art History, Painting | |
| saikan 斎館 | Also *kandachi 神館, shinkan 神館. |
Architecture, Shrines | |
| saiken 細見 | Also Yoshiwara saiken 吉原細見. Annually published guide to the new *Yoshiwara… |
Art History, Painting | |
| saikondō 西金堂 | An image hall *kondō 金堂 situated to the west of a pagoda in temple grounds.… |
Architecture, Buildings, Structures | |
| saimitsuga 細密画 | Miniature paintings in a detailed style best suited for fans or albums. Two other terms, mitsuga 密画 and saiga… |
Art History, Painting | |
| Saimon 西門 | An eight-legged *hakkyakumon 八脚門, 3-bay wide, 1-entrance gate with a gable… |
Architecture, Gates | |
| Saimyōji shiorido 西明寺枝折戸 | Lit. "Saimyōji 西明寺-style latticed bamboo door." One type of raised lattice door *… |
Architecture, Tea Houses | |
| sairei zu 祭礼図 | Lit. "festival pictures." Paintings that originated in folk beliefs and Shinto rituals shinji 神事, mostly related to… |
Art History, Painting | |
| saishiki busshi 彩色仏師 | Lit. "Buddhist colorist." An artist who applies colored pigment to the nimbus or pedestal of a Buddhist statue. A … |
Art History, Sculpture | |
| saishiki 彩色 | The application of color to various architectural elements. In the case of paintings, this normally involves the use of… |
Art History, Painting | |
| saishikizō 彩色像 | A painted statue, usually a Buddhist image. Saishikizō are colored over the entire surface of the figure;… |
Art History, Sculpture | |
| Saisōrō 採桑老 | A *bugaku 舞楽 dance and mask *bugakumen… |
Art History, Sculpture | |
| saitan surimono 歳旦摺物 | Also simply saitan 歳旦. A woodblock print commissioned by a poet, or a man of versatile tastes, to give to his… |
Art History, Painting | |
| sakadono 酒殿 | ✓ | Also misakedono 御酒殿; the prefix mi 御 is an honorific. |
Architecture, Shrines |
| Sakaki 賢木 | ✓ | A pictorial subject based on "Sakaki" ("The Sacred Tree"), Chapter 10 of Genji monogatari 源氏物語 (The Tale of… |
Art History, Painting, Document |
| sakakibashira 逆木柱 | ✓ | Also sakabashira 逆柱 or sakasabashira 逆さ柱. Lit. "upside down pillar." |
Architecture, Decorations |
| sakazukimendo 杯面戸 | ✓ | Also written 盃面戸. Sometimes called goki 呉器 or gokibame 呉器羽目. The space created between small bearing… |
Architecture, General Terms |
| saku-itabei 柵板塀 | A fence supported by posts along its rear side, usually with more than four posts per one bay. The facing boards are placed… |
Architecture, General Terms | |
| saku 柵 | 1 Fence. Read ki (also written 城) in the ancient period. A palisade of stakes aligned at regular… |
Architecture, Castles | |
| Sakuheimon 朔平門 | ✓ | The Sakuheimon is the center gate on the north side of Kyoto Gosho 京都御所, during the end of the Heian period. It can be seen… |
Architecture, Gates |
| Sakuteiki 作庭記 | Lit. "Treatise on Garden Making." The oldest and most revered Japanese text on garden design, it was probably… |
Architecture, Gardens, Document | |
| sama 狭間 | ✓ | Also read hasama. A loophole or porthole made in the wall of the keep, tower, or parapet to allow a castle to… |
Architecture, Castles |
| samakubari 狭間配 | Lit. "loophole distribution." The number of loopholes per two meter (one ken 間) interval in a castle. Also refers… |
Architecture, Castles | |
| samidare 五月雨 | Lit. "fifth month rain." A geometric pattern used for fretwork muntins. The design is inspired by early summer rain, … |
Architecture, Decorations | |
| samisentsugi 三味線継 | ✓ | A wooden splicing joint used for a beam. The length of the joint is 3x the height of the beam and the tenon *… | Architecture, Joints |
| samon 砂紋 | Also read shamon. Lit. "sand crest." The technique of making a pattern or design in sand or gravel. The creation of… |
Architecture, General Terms | |
| san-en 三遠 | The three types of distances desired for mountains in Chinese ink painting as defined by the famous Academy landscapist of… |
Art History, Painting | |
| san-no-tsuji 桟の辻 | The junction points on a door or window frame where the top rail *kamigamachi… |
Architecture, General Terms | |
| san'yō 三葉 | Lit. "three leaves." A decorative pattern carved into the shape of three leaves; used particularly for metal fittings found… |
Architecture, Decorations | |
| sanageyō 猿投窯 | Sanage 猿投 kilns. A group of old kilns in an area stretching from the western area of modern Nagoya 名古屋 city to the northern… |
Art History, Crafts | |
| sanbari 桟梁 | ✓ | The transverse beams placed in a row at right angle to the large header beams *kabuki… |
Architecture, General Terms |
| Sanbasō 三番叟 | 1 A pictorial subject taken from the auspicious *kabuki 歌舞伎… |
Art History, Painting, Sculpture | |
| Sanchūjin jōzetsu 山中人饒舌 | Lit. "Chatter of a Mountain Dweller." A two-volume treatise on painting theory by the late Edo artist and Confucian… |
Art History, Painting, Document | |
| sandaibutsu 三大仏 | ✓ | Lit. "three great Buddhas." The three largest images in the history of Buddhist statuary in Japan. Originally the … |
Art History, Sculpture |
| sandandaki 三段滝 | Lit. "three-stage waterfall." One common type of garden waterfall. Through the arrangement of earth and rocks, the waterfall… |
Architecture, Gardens | |
| sandō 三道 | Three horizontal grooves in the neck of a Buddha *nyorai 如来 or bodhisattva *… |
Art History, Sculpture | |
| sando 桟戸 | ✓ | A simple door made of vertical planks with horizontal cross members that are about as wide as the vertical ties placed… |
Architecture, General Terms |
| sane 実 | 1 A structural element or tenon that projects out from the end of a board, post, or beam. Such projecting… |
Architecture, General Terms | |
| sanehijiki 実肘木 | ✓ | A purlin-bearing bracket arm; one that is inserted into the small bearing blocks *makito… |
Architecture, General Terms |
| sangaibishi 三蓋菱 | ✓ | Also written 三階菱. A design motif created from three piled-up diamond shapes. | Art History, Painting |
| sangarado 桟唐戸 | ✓ | Also read sankarado. Paneled entrance doors introduced from China in the 13th to 14th century. They are associated… |
Architecture, General Terms |
| sangawara 桟瓦 | ✓ | A pantile that combines a broad concave tile *hiragawara 平瓦 and a semi-cylindrical… | Architecture, Roofing Tiles |
| sangawarabuki 桟瓦葺 | ✓ | Also called jigawara 地瓦 because it is a base tile; and kanryakugawara 簡略瓦 because it combines a broad… |
Architecture, Roofing Tiles |
| sangedatsumon 三解脱門 | Also *sanmon 三門. The most famous example is the very large 21.05 m x 9.72 m gate at Zōjōji 増上寺… |
Architecture, Gates | |
| sangen-ikko 三間一戸 | ✓ | A 3 x 2 bay gate, often 8-legged style *hakkyakumon 八脚門, with entrance… |
Architecture, Buildings, Structures |
| sangendō 三間堂 | ✓ | A building with 3 bays on all four sides, commonly written 3 × 3 bays. The result is usually a square building. However,… |
Architecture, Buildings, Structures |
| sangokubutsu 三国仏 | Lit. "three countries Buddha." Buddhist statues made from the fourth to the seventh centuries in Korea. At that time, Korea… |
Art History, Sculpture | |
| sanja-zukuri 三社造 | Also called sangenyashiro or sangensha 三間社. A type of Shinto shrine. The main building *… |
Architecture, Shrines | |
| sanjō bussho 三条仏所 | A Buddhist sculpture workshop *bussho 仏所 that was located in Kyoto's Sanjō 三条… |
Art History, Sculpture | |
| sanjū-no-tō 三重塔 | Three-storied pagodas, most of which are made of wood, but a small percentage are made of stone. See *… |
Architecture, Buildings, Sculpture | |
| sanjū orekugi 三重折釘 | ✓ | A nail that is bent in three tines at a ninety degree angle. Like the twice bent nail *… |
Architecture, General Terms |
| Sanju 散手 | Abbreviation of Sanju hajinraku 散手破陣楽. *Bugaku 舞楽 dance and mask *… |
Art History, Sculpture | |
| Sanjūbanshin 三十番神 | Also read Sanjūbanjin. Various sets of thirty *kami 神 who… |
Art History, Iconography | |
| sanjūbari 三重梁 | ✓ | Roof framework composed of struts separating three tiers of transverse beams, each proportionately shortened in length than… |
Architecture, General Terms |
| sanjūdana 三重棚 | ✓ | 1 Triple shelves. Shelves which now are rarely seen in a tea ceremony room except at Nishihonganji… |
Architecture, Tea Houses |
| sanjūnisō 三十二相 | The thirty-two physical characteristics that symbolize the superhuman qualities of the Buddha. These originated in Indian… |
Art History, Sculpture | |
| Sanjūrokkasen 三十六歌仙 | Lit. "thirty-six immortal poets." Imaginary portraits of the 36 outstanding poets from the 7th to 10th centuries selected by… |
Art History, Painting | |
| sanjūsanshin 三十三身 | Abbreviation of Kannon sanjūsanshin 観音三十三身. The 33 forms in which, according to the *… |
Art History, Iconography | |
| Sanjūsanten 三十三天 | Heaven of the Thirty-three Gods (Sk: Trayastrimsa deva). Also referred to as Tōriten とう利天, with tori thought to be… |
Art History, Iconography | |
| sankaku tōrō 三角灯篭 | A variation on the *yukimi dōrō 雪見灯籠. This type of lantern is found in the… |
Architecture, Lanterns | |
| sankei mandara 参詣曼荼羅 | Large-scale hanging scroll paintings of the landscapes of shrines and temples which include images of pilgrims worshipping… |
Art History, Iconography | |
| sankō tōrō 三光灯籠 | An unusual lantern style found along the pond at Katsura Rikyū 桂離宮, Kyoto. It is a small, rectangular box-shaped lantern… |
Architecture, Lanterns | |
| sankōjō 三光尉 | A Noh mask *nōmen 能面 representing a plebeian old man. Deep furrows line the… |
Art History, Sculpture | |
| sankosho 三鈷杵 | A pestle with three prongs at each end, usually made of gilt bronze. The central grip is often encircled by demons' eyes… |
Art History, Sculpture | |
| sankoshomon 三鈷杵文 | Lit. "three-prong pounder motif." Also called *kongōsho 金剛杵 (vajra pounder,… |
Architecture, Roofing Tiles | |
| sankozuka-no-ken 三鈷柄剣 | A sword, with a blade at one end and a handle topped by three prongs shaped like a *sankosho… |
Art History, Sculpture | |
| Sankyō 三教 | Ch: Sanjiao. A painting subject of the three patriarchs, Confucius (Jp: *Kōshi… |
Art History, Painting | |
| sankyōmon 三きょう門 | Also called sanren āchimon 三連アーチ門. A gate with three arches, made within a stone wall. |
Architecture, Gates | |
| sanmaidō 三昧堂 | Also called nenbutsu sanmaidō 念仏三昧堂. Nenbutsu 念仏 prayers are recited, to obtain unity with *… |
Architecture, Buildings, Structures | |
| Sanmaya-e 三昧耶会 | Also read Samaya-e. The second of the nine *mandara 曼荼羅 comprising… |
Art History, Iconography | |
| Sanmaya mandara 三昧耶曼荼羅 | Also read Samaya mandara. A form of *mandara 曼荼羅 (mandala)… |
Art History, Iconography | |
| sanmen sōbō 三面僧房 | Priest and monk dormitories constructed to the north, east and west of the lecture hall *… |
Architecture, Buildings, Structures | |
| sanmen tōshoku 三面頭飾 | Also sanmen hōshoku 三面宝飾, sanmen hōkan 三面宝冠. A Buddhist crown that consisted of three upstanding ornaments… |
Art History, Sculpture | |
| sanmen zushi 三面厨子 | A miniature shrine characterized by three doors, one placed at the front and one on each side of the structure. It contains… |
Architecture, Accessories | |
| sanmon 三門 | ✓ | Also written 山門; often called *sangedatsumon 三解脱門 meaning enlightenment gate. Main gate… |
Architecture, Gates |
| sanne 三衣 | Also read san'e. Three different robes used by Buddhist priests. According to Indian Buddhist tradition, each monk… |
Art History, Sculpture | |
| Sannō mandara 山王曼荼羅 | Also Hie Sannō mandara 日吉山王曼荼羅. A class of Shinto devotional paintings having to do with Hie Sannōsha 日吉山王社 (… |
Art History, Iconography | |
| sannō torii 山王鳥居 | ✓ | Also called hie torii 日吉鳥居, sōgō torii 総合鳥居, hafu torii 破風鳥居 or gasshō torii 合掌鳥居.… |
Architecture, Shrines |
| sannojikuzushi 三の字崩 | ✓ | A type of decorative pattern used for muntins on transoms *ranma 欄間. The design… |
Architecture, Decorations |
| Sano-no-watari 佐野の渡り | ✓ | Lit. "crossing the Sano." A historic river crossing often a subject of ancient poetry. The place recorded as Sano 狭野 in Kii… |
Art History, Painting |
| sanpei jiman 三平二満 | Also read sanpei niman. A homely woman's face characterized by three flat or low parts sanpei 三平: the… |
Art History, Painting | |
| Sanpei kaikyō 三平開胸 | Ch: Sanping kaixiong. Lit. "Sanpei baring his chest." Also Sanpei Sekkyō 三平石鞏 (Ch: Sanping Shigong) and Sekkyō… |
Art History, Painting | |
| sanpin 三品 | Ch: sanpin. Lit. "three classes." Three classes of Chinese calligraphy and painting. In ascending order, the… |
Art History, Painting | |
| sanrō 山廊 | ✓ | Also kirō 機廊. Small, single-storied, detached buildings on temple grounds constructed on each side of a two-… |
Architecture, Buildings, Structures |
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