JAPANESE ARCHITECTURE. The physical features of the country and the national characteristics of cleanliness and simplicity have determined and guided the general trend of Japanese architecture ; wood is the principal building material, for Japan is abundantly supplied with such splendid timber as hinoki (Chamaecyparis obtusa), which is still in excellent condi tion in buildings 12 or 13 centuries old. A commission was created in 1897 for the preservation and care of such buildings, as well as sculpture and other works of art, and up to the beginning of 1928 more than I,Ioo buildings, in spite of the recurrent con flagrations, had been placed under "special State protection." Pre-Buddhistic Period.—The primitive form of Japanese architecture is known as "primaeval palace construction." It con sists in two posts set in the ground and supporting a ridge-pole, to each end of which are lashed slantwise two rafters reaching to the ground. To these rafters are tied horizontal beams to sup port a thatch which serves both as walls and roof ; later a wooden floor was introduced, the whole structure raised, and the original shape of the roof retained while vertical walls were added. This simple form of architecture has been adhered to in some shrines sacred to Shinto. The oldest style is 6-yashiro, the prototype of which is the shrine at Izumo ; it developed into such forms as 6-tori and Sumiyoshi, in none of which is there any evidence of the curves of a later date. These forms soon underwent slight varia tion, forming the style known as Shinmei, a perfect example of which is the Imperial Ise Shrine, which is rebuilt every 20 years, exactly the same to the minutest detail, with plain white wood and a thatch of chamaecyparis bark. It is recorded that the emperor Nintoku (A.D.
did away with palace decorations for the sake of economy, and "lofty architecture" is spoken of in connec tion with his reign as well as with those of two succeeding em perors, thus showing that the palaces at that time were no longer built in the simplest form. Their architectural development, how ever, was retarded, owing to the custom of changing the seat of the imperial court at the death of each emperor, and real growth, therefore, only came with the establishment of the court, first at Nara (708) and later at Kyoto, where it remained nearly 11 centuries before it was finally removed to Tokyo in 1868.
The official introduction of Bud dhism to Japan from Korea in A.D. 552 completely changed the architecture as well as other branches of Japanese art. Temples on a grand scale with elaborate detail were built. Some of the buildings of the Horyuji monastery date from the beginning of the 7th century, and are considered to be the oldest wooden buildings in the world. With Buddhism, the influence of the six dynasties of China became evident, though those who built the Japanese temples were Koreans introduced at the same time. Soon afterwards, however, T'ang influence became irresistible, and monasteries assumed a still greater grandeur in scale, as may be seen from what remains of Toclaiji at Nara (completed about 75o), a representative work of the Tempyo period (708-781). The exterior of the temple was coated with red oxide of lead and the interior painted in vivid colours, especially in the shade known as ungen; the palace at that time was also probably gorgeous with red pillars and green tiles. With the rise of two powerful sects of esoteric Buddhism (Shingon and Tendai) in the early Heian period (782-888) temple architecture again underwent a change, as the tenets of those sects required the monasteries to be built on mountain tops; Shinto architecture changed also and a curve was given to gable and roof, such forms being evolved as Kasuga, Nagare and Hiye.
In the second half of the 9th century intercourse between Japan and China was interrupted. Left alone, Japan enjoyed a period of self-realization which gave the native taste a chance to discriminate and reassert itself in architecture, as well as in other branches of art. Grace and finish were imparted to architectural detail without sacrificing the strength and harmony of the whole. To the roof was given a gentle sweep of exquisite grace; to the interior a richer, but more subdued tone. However, the later Fujiwara period (1069-1185) revealed signs of weakness and a tendency to over-refinement and delicacy, and a philosophical endeavour to amalgamate Shintoism and Buddhism resulted in the modification of ShintO architecture. Aristocrats began building their mansions much after the fashion of the imperial residences; a style of architecture—Shindenzukuri —consisting of a series of oblong houses systematically arranged and joined by corridors, with a garden laid out on the southern side in which was a big pond, became the fashion.
Another great wave of Chinese influence began to be felt in the Kamakura period (1186-1335), when the Zen sect of Buddhists, which was destined to grip the mind of the people and to influence the art of the country funda mentally, was introduced from China. At the same time a peculi arity of the Sung dynasty under the name of "Tenjiku," or Indian, was introduced. Side by side with these imported styles the native architecture continued, and only later was influenced by the Zen principles; the "Tenjiku" style, apparently not congenial to native taste, was allowed to die out. In the Zen style the interiors were either plain, or coloured with utmost simplicity, a low relief generally constituting the only form of decoration. The period
being strongly militaristic it was but natural that a style should arise, known as Buke-zukuri, for military aristocrats. It was a natural native growth, but its fuller development was seen in the Nanbokucho (1336-93) and the Ashikaga
Periods.
Generally speaking, the Ashikaga period emphasized detail, ignor ing structural significance, and revealing weakness in place of refinement, though it produced some great works with far-reaching consequences.
Based upon the Shinden style of Fujiwara and the Buke style of Kamakura, already mentioned, and under the influence of Zen, there arose a form known as Shoin-zukuri (a study style) in con nection with domestic and palace architecture. It admitted more light into the house and provided the room with tokonoma (a recess for paintings and flowers to serve as decoration) and shelves for ornaments, etc.—two characteristic and pleasing features in the Japanese house. However, a greater triumph of native archi tecture was the creation of the Chaseki, a place for cha-no-yu, commonly known as the tea ceremonies, which, with Zen at its foundation, has most vitally influenced all branches of Japanese art, especially painting, architecture and garden designing. In the chaseki variation was insisted on lest monotony should weary the mind, and harmony and balance lest freedom of soul should be disturbed. While cha-no-yu was in vogue—in the latter part of the Ashikaga period culminating in the Momoyama period (1574– 1602)—there developed the art of building fortified castles, strong and massive, and resistant to earthquakes. In the Momoyama period, though the forms were too well established to suffer any material change, architecture sustained a great innovation. For the first time in its long history, there were built lay buildings which far surpasEed the temples in splendour; among noteworthy ex amples now remaining may be mentioned the Hiunkaku and the Stork chamber, both in Nishi Hongwanji, Kyoto, but originally at Momoyama, and the sanctuary of Ninnaji at Omuro which was part of an imperial palace.
Another nation alist period began with the Tokugawa regime (1603-1867), a period of peace and wealth. Many new buildings were erected and ruined temples restored; but it was in the construction of mauso leums and great edifices built over the bones of Tokugawa Shoguns that the spirit of the age found its fullest expression. The best examples may be seen at Nikko. They are in a style known as Gongen or Yatsumune, suggesting a complicated system of roofs; the buildings were lacquered within and without, and profusely decorated with carvings. Many feudal lords of the period, follow ing the example of the Shogun, erected such extravagant buildings that it became necessary to impose restrictions. The magnitude of the scale on which the Shogun kept his court may be con ceived from the Nijo palace in Kyoto, still well preserved.
The evolution of the common dwelling houses of to-day was completed in the Tokugawa period. It was based on the Chaseki and Shoin styles, which were adopted by the people in general, and it brought with it a great development in landscape gardens which became indispensable as an integral part of the dwelling. The ordinary dwelling-house is one or two storied, roofed either with grey tiles, or in the country, with thatch. The floor is covered with closely-fitted mats 2 inches thick, measuring 3 X 6 ft., the size of rooms being computed by the number of mats in them. The house is divided into rooms by sliding screens; light is admitted by a paper-covered lattice mounted as a sliding window, these screens are removable so as to throw the series of rooms into one. At night the house is closely shuttered by wooden panels running in grooves on the outside. It is now usual to have one reception room furnished in Western style. The kitchen, long neglected, has been much im proved by the introduction of Western conveniences and labour saving devices. The whole interior, however, remains essentially simple and refined.
With the restoration of power to the im perial throne in 1868, which was followed by the suppression of the feudal system, an attempt was made "to abolish every institu tion in Japan which had no counterpart in the civilized west." Naturally, the Western style of architecture was welcomed with a zeal that led to the invitation of European and American archi tects to the country to demonstrate the art of building with bricks, stone, iron and concrete. Some attempts were made to harmonize the Western and native styles of architecture, but with little suc cess. A certain reaction set in just before the great earthquake and fire of 1923 destroyed much of Tokyo and its vicinity, expos ing the weaknesses of both styles. A tendency, however, is to be noted towards the adoption, on one hand, of Western architecture for public buildings, and on the other towards maintenance of the pure native style for private dwelling-houses, since the old customs are still kept up in private life and the taste for simplicity remains essentially unchanged. (See ARCHITECTURE; SCULPTURE; No