Shinto architecture

thumb|The torii at Itsukushima Shrine

thin, tapered pieces of wood primarily used to cover roofs and walls of buildings to protect them from the weather

thumb|Dougong inside the East Hall timber hall of Foguang Temple, built in 857 during the [[Tang dynasty]] thumb|Dougong brackets on an Eastern Han dynasty|Eastern Han (25–220 CE) era architectural model of a watchtower thumb|A stone-carved relief above a cave entrance of the Yungang Grottoes ([[Shanxi province) showing an imitation of dougong brackets, Northern Wei dynasty (386–535 CE)]] thumb|Stone pillars made in imitation of wooden dougong and "人-shaped gong" (Chinese: 人字栱) at cave entrance of Tianlongshan Grottoes, Northern Qi. Dougong (Chinese: 斗拱; pinyin: dǒugǒng; lit. 'cap [and] block'

Traditional stone-crafted lighting fixtures seen throughout the East Asia

thumb|250 px|Izumo Taisha's , closed to the public In Shinto shrine architecture, the , also called , or sometimes as in Ise Shrine's case, is the most sacred building at a Shinto shrine, intended purely for the use of the enshrined kami, usually symbolized by a mirror or sometimes by a statue. The building is normally in the rear of the shrine and closed to the general public. In front of it usually stands the haiden, or oratory. The haiden is often connected to the honden by a heiden, or hall of offerings.

thumb|Chōzu-ya at rural Make-jinja thumb|A sign (read right-to-left) explains how to do chōzu thumb|Inside a pavilion, performing chōzu is a Shinto water ablution pavilion for a ceremonial purification rite known as temizu or . The pavilion contains a large water-filled basin called a .

thumb|A dohyō in Takamatsu A dohyō (, ) is the ring in which a sumo wrestling bout occurs. A typical dohyō is a circle in diameter, bounded by partially buried rice-straw bales. In official professional tournaments (honbasho), it is mounted on a square platform of clay high and wide on each side.

thumb|225 px|The sandō at Fushimi Inari Taisha in Kyoto

hall of worship or oratory in the Shinto shrine

architecture of Japanese Shinto shrines

part of a Shinto shrine used to house offerings

{| style="border-collapse:collapse" cellpadding="0" |style="border:1px solid black;"|alt=Wooden belltower, old style|x200px |style="border:1px solid black;"|alt=Wooden belltower, new style|x200px |} The two main types of bell tower in Japan The or is the bell tower of a Buddhist temple in Japan, housing the temple's . It can also be found at some Shinto shrines which used to function as temples (see article Shinbutsu shūgō), as for example Nikkō Tōshō-gū. Two main types exist, the older , which has walls, and the more recent or , which does not.

type of roof in East Asian architecture

thumb|275 px|Ujigami Shrine in Uji, [[Kyoto Prefecture]] The or is a traditional Shinto shrine architectural style characterized by a very asymmetrical gabled roof () projecting outwards on one of the non-gabled sides, above the main entrance, to form a portico (see photo). This is the feature which gives it its name. It is the most common style among shrines all over the country. That the building has its main entrance on the side which runs parallel to the roof's ridge (non gabled-side) makes it belong to the style.

right|thumb|A gongen-zukuri shrine. From the top: honden, ishi-no-ma, haiden. In yellow the ridges of the roofs , also called , and , is a complex Shinto shrine structure in which the haiden, or worship hall, and the honden, or main sanctuary, are interconnected under the same roof in the shape of an H.

Japanese term for gate

thumb|275 px|A building at Ise Shrine is an ancient Japanese architectural style typical of Ise Grand Shrine's honden, the holiest of Shinto shrines. It is most common in Mie Prefecture.

thumb|275 px|Tsurugaoka Hachiman-gū's kagura-den

thumb|Rōmon at Hannya-ji, a National Treasure. Note the absence of stairs to the second story.

{| style="border-collapse:collapse" cellpadding="0" |style="border:1px solid black;"|alt=Kamosu Jinja's honden|x220px |style="border:1px solid black;"|alt=A reconstructed dwelling at Toro|x220px |} Kamosu Jinja's honden and a granary at Toro is an ancient Japanese architectural style and the oldest Shinto shrine architectural style. Named after Izumo Taisha's honden (sanctuary), like Ise Grand Shrine's shinmei-zukuri style it features a bark roof decorated with poles called chigi and katsuogi, plus archaic features like gable-end pillars and a single central pillar (shin no mihashira). The '

thumb|200 px|Sumiyoshi Taisha's Funatama Jinja is an ancient Japanese Shinto shrine architectural style which takes its name from Sumiyoshi Taisha's honden in Ōsaka. As in the case of the taisha-zukuri and shinmei-zukuri styles, its birth predates the arrival of Buddhism in Japan.

{| style="border-collapse:collapse" cellpadding="0" |style="border:1px solid black;"|alt=Yakushu-ji|x200px |style="border:1px solid black;"|alt=Kibitsu Jinja|x200px |} Two examples of kairō , , is the Japanese version of a cloister, a covered corridor originally built around the most sacred area of a Buddhist temple, a zone which contained the kondō and the tō. Nowadays it can be found also at Shinto shrines and at shinden-zukuri aristocratic residences.

shinto torii gate

thumb|The honden at Uda Mikumari Shrine Kami-gū is made of three joined Kasuga-zukuri buildings is a traditional Shinto shrine architectural style which takes its name from Kasuga Taisha's honden.

thumb|275 px|Engaku-ji, a building with old-style katōmado , also written , is a style of pointed arch or bell-shaped window found in Japanese architecture. It first arrived in Japan from China together with Zen Buddhism, as an element of Zen style architecture, but from the end of the 16th century it started to be used in temples of other Buddhist sects, Shinto shrines, castles, and samurai residences as well. The window initially was not flared, but its design and shape changed over time: the two vertical frames were widened and curves were added at the bottom. The kanji characters used for

Japanese architectural element

thumb|A shrine surrounded by a tamagaki A is a fence surrounding a Japanese Shinto shrine, a sacred area or an imperial palace. Believed to have been initially just a brushwood barrier of trees, tamagaki have since been made of a variety of materials including wood, stone and—in recent years—concrete. Depending on the material and technique utilized, such fences have a variety of names: made of roughly finished thick boards, made of unpeeled or unstripped boards or logs, , and , , made of vertically set thin strips of bamboo or wood, The simple fences of ancient and medieval times became

thumb|300px|Plan of a large Latin cross church, with the chancel (strict definition) highlighted. This chancel terminates in a semicircular sanctuary in the [[apse, and is separated from the curved walls to the east in the diagram by an ambulatory.]] thumb|300px|Plan with the broader definition of the chancel highlightedthumb|View from the nave of the chancel of Condom Cathedral in France, with ambulatories and two altars, the modern one in the choirthumb|St Peter's, Lilley, Hertfordshire a medium-sized English church showing the nave, chancel arch, and a chancel with choir and sanctuary In ch

275 px|thumb|Kibitsu Shrine's honden-haiden complex. The main entrance (hidden) is on the right , or is a traditional Japanese Shinto architectural style characterized by four dormer gables, two per lateral side, on the roof of a very large honden (sanctuary). The gables are set at a right angle to the main roof ridge, and the honden is part of a single complex also including a haiden (worship hall). Kibitsu Shrine in Okayama, Okayama Prefecture, Japan is the sole example of the style, although the Soshi-dō of Hokekyō-ji in Chiba prefecture is believed to have been modeled on it.

thumb|275 px|The honden at in Matsuyama, Ehime, is a rare example of the hachiman-zukuri style. The honden (left) is surrounded by a cloister-like corridor called kairō (right).

is a type of ornamental finial used on Japanese railings. Gibōshi bridge ornaments resemble an onion; the ends are bulbous and typically come to a point. It is believed that the shape of gibōshi was from hōju (; "sacred gem" or "cintāmaṇi") which is used to decorate roofs. They are often found on bridges in Japanese gardens, temples and shinto shrines.

thumb|275 px|A row of sessha at Iwa Shrine, [[Hyōgo Prefecture]] and , also called (collectively known as ) are small or miniature shrines entrusted to the care of a larger shrine, generally due to some deep connection with the enshrined kami.