Shoji and Fusuma are sliding doors in Japanese traditional houses.įusuma are used to divide large rooms into smaller private rooms. Tokonoma is a wooded rectangular space which is usually decorated with a Japanese scroll displaying a painting or calligraphy, seasonal flower arrangement and/or other ornaments. In ryokan (Japanese traditional inn), temples, and shrines, tatami are used in most of the rooms.Ī room with tatami flooring can have a decoration space called tokonoma. Today houses in Japan have few rooms with tatami flooring, however, tatami mats are still an important component of Japanese architecture. By the 17th century, it was common that all rooms in a house were tatami-floored. Over the centuries, tatami were gradually popularized and reached the homes of samurai, ruling nobility, and common people. Tatami used to be used only for the highest aristocrats during the Heian Period (794-1185). Normally tatami mats are ordered to fit the room size. Most tatami mat is about 0.9 meters by 1.8 meters, although the size can vary depending on the region. However, nowadays, tatami sometimes have compressed wood chip boards or polystyrene foam cores. Tatami are traditionally made of rice straw covered with woven soft rush straw. In traditional Japanese rooms, tatami mats are always used as a flooring material. Especially Japanese cypress can be used for a bathtub because the scent of the wood has benefits to relax and even proven to kill bacteria. These woods are appreciated not only for their durability and sturdiness but also for their natural scents. Japanese cypress, cherry, Japanese cedar, and Japanese zelkova are the most used types of wood for buildings. ![]() The knots in woods are typically considered as decoration. Since ancient times, wood was given great respect by Japanese people and not covered by paint or other coatings when used for buildings. ![]() That’s partly because of wood’s ability of absorbing moisture and Japanese traditional carpentry which allows them to build the buildings without using any nails and developed strong earthquake resistance. ![]() The oldest wooden architecture in Japan is Horyuji temple which is built in the 7th century, and you can still see the beautiful temple after a long history of earthquakes and natural disasters. Wood is the most preferred material for Japanese traditional buildings due to the constant earthquake.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |