1　A gradation of colors or tones from dark to light or vice versa. One example is colorization of the…

1　Abbreviation of botan karakusagawara 牡丹唐草瓦. A roof tile, often an eaves-end tile, whose pendant…

Lit. the hot water for tea. Also known as sadō 茶道 or chadō. The ritual art of preparing and drinking…

1　An abbreviation for *Daikokuten 大黒天 (Sk: Mahakala). Regarded by…

1　Also written 反. A step. The level part or tread of a flight of stairs. When made of wood, the tread is…

1　Also written 葺返. A board which projects diagonally out from the top of a statue canopy, *…

1　The arrangement of muntins, lattice (*fukiyose gōshi…

1　The triangular frame created by joining a pair of cruck-like members *…

1　Also called *gaku 額. A tablet or board, framed or unframed, on…

1　 Diamond- or lozenge-shaped lattice or muntins used on doors, transoms, and fences *…

1　Also pronounced hōshu. A sacred gem. Usually a ball or tear-drop shape object that is sacred to…

1　A phoenix. A mythical Chinese bird, thought to have been introduced to Japan in the Asuka period. The…

1　Lit. Mt. Penglai. Ch: Penglaishan. The most famous of the three Elysian mountain-isles believed to lie…

1　Also read hossōge, an abbreviation of hōsōgemon 宝相華文. Lit. precious flower. Hōsōge…

1　Two strips of fabric directly above and below a painting measuring the exact width of the painting,…

1　A roller used for a hanging scroll *kakemono 掛物 or hand…

1　Lotus petal design carved around the lower base kiban 基盤 of a lantern *…

1　A pattern representing mist, often stylized into shapes like the ideographs 工 or 王. It is used as a…

Also kakō kidori 加工木取; aradori 疎取; arakidori 疎木取.

1　The…

Also written 香狭間, and abbreviated to *sama 狭間. Formerly called *…

1　A surface of a Japanese architectural component that faces front.

2　Endpaper,…

Sutras written in such a way that the characters form the image of a pagoda. One of the two methods is called moji…

Also written 魚子, 斜子. Lit. "fish-roe."
1　A pattern of small dots thought to resemble fish-roe, and…

Lit. "lotus petal."
1　A pendant *gatō 瓦当, found on semi-…

Also written 寂.
1　An idea of beauty particularly important in the tea ceremony and haiku 俳句…

1　Monkey. The monkey is represented in kyōgen 狂言 by a masked and costumed figure. The monkey mask…

1　Also pronounced seikaiha. A wave design made of the arches of concentric circles superimposed…

1　A generic term for a roof line that has a broken plane, the parts of which run in the same direction. A…

1　Lit. "lion-mouth tile." An ornamental tile placed on each end of a main ridge, instead of the more common…

A measure of height for a Buddhist statue based on shūjaku 周尺, a unit of measure used in Zhou dynasty China (1 …

1　Also sangai 傘蓋, hōgai 宝蓋, kagai 華蓋, kengai 懸蓋. Sk: chatra…

1　Also tomoe 巴. A pattern of one or more curled tadpole shapes inside a circle. The pattern is…

Also written 請花, 受華, 請華; sometimes pronounced ukehana. Flower-shaped support. A support in the shape of an open,…

1　Chinese: yunqiwen.
An ancient Chinese decorative design formed from C and S shapes. It is…

1　Also shiagenuri 仕上げ塗. The final layer applied to a decorative painting sōshoku kōji…

1　Rope made by twisting together strands of straw. In clay statuary, the central wooden core *…

1　Lit. "Japanese style architecture." The architectural techniques and styles introduced from China during…

1　Lit. "eight bridges." A type of low bridge built over a shallow pond or marsh using wooden planks without…

1　A string of beads or lacework used to decorate Buddhist statues and objects. Often found on Bodhisattva…