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Buildings and Cities in Japan's Golden Century
From: Columbia University
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| Nijo Castle. | |
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The site begins with an overview of the style of architecture known as Shoin, which evolved in response to a burgeoning samurai class, whose aesthetics and patterns of daily living demanded new architectural elements. The Shoin page provides a context for these changes, investigating the history of Shoin as well as its roots in the Shinden period (794-1185), a time when many of Japan's "native" styles of expression were developed and when the warrior class first arose. Users can look at a typical floor plan of a Shoin residence and color photographs of buildings in the style. |
There is also a section on the architecture of Kyoto, whose architecture speaks volumes about Japan's changing sociopolitical atmosphere during the late sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries. This section includes a brief introduction to the predominant architectural style of sixteenth- and seventeenth-century Kyoto, followed by a discussion of daily life in the city, with further information on politics, religion and recreation. |
The Japanese tearoom, or chashitsu, is the subject of another section. Brought to Japan by way of China during China's T'ang dynasty (618-905), the tea ceremony assumed a social, even spiritual, role in Japanese culture only a few centuries after it was introduced. The specially constructed tearoom followed soon after, adopting what is now known as its "traditional" form--aesthetically simple so as not to interfere with the contemplation of the ceremony itself. |
This section is divided into two parts, symbolized by the Japanese characters meaning "tea" and "room." The "tea" section provides a brief history of tea in Japan. Visitors to the "room" section can view a layout of a tearoom and learn about its essential elements. A bibliography lists several sources of further information on the tea ceremony, traditional Japanese architecture, and Japanese culture during the Golden Century. |
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tudents in Columbia University's East Asian Languages and Culture Department have created a simple yet elegant site, 