Fig. 112.—Shōji with ornamental frame.
It has been necessary to anticipate the special description of the details of a room in so far as a description of the mats and screens were concerned, since a general idea of the interior [pg 133] could not be well understood without clearly understanding the nature of those objects which form inseparable elements of every Japanese room, and which are so unlike anything to which we are accustomed. Having given these features, it may be well to glance at a general view of the few typical rooms before examining farther into the details of their finish.
The room shown in [fig. 96] gives a fair idea of the appearance of the guest-room with its two bays or recesses, the tokonoma and chigai-dana,—one of which, the tokonoma, is a clear recess, in which usually hangs a picture; and in the other is a small closet and shelf, and an additional shelf above, closed by sliding doors. The sketch was taken from the adjoining room, the fusuma between the two having been removed. The grooves for the fusuma may be seen in the floor and in the kamoi overhead. The farther recess is called the tokonoma, which means literally, “bed-space.” This recess, or at least its raised platform, is supposed to have been anciently used for the bed-place.[15]
Let us pause for a moment to consider the peculiar features of this room. The partition separating the two recesses has for its post a stick of timber, from which the bark only has been removed; and this post, or toko-bashira as it is called, is almost invariably a stick of wood in its natural state, or with the bark only removed; and if it is gnarled, or tortuous in grain, or if it presents knots or burls, it is all the more desirable. Sometimes the post may be hewn in such a way that in section it has an octagonal form,—the cutting being done in broad scarfs, giving it a peculiar appearance as shown in [fig. 113]. Sometimes the post may have one or two branches above, which are worked into the structure as an ornamental feature. The ceiling of the tokonoma is usually, if not always, [pg 134] flush, with the ceiling of the room, while that of the chigai-dana is much lower. The floor of the tokonoma is higher than that of the chigai-dana, and its sill may be rough or finished; and even when finished squarely, some natural surface may be left through the curvature of the stick from which it has been hewn, and which had been selected for this very peculiarity,—a feature, by the way, that our carpenters would regard as a blemish. The floor of the tokonoma is in nearly every case a polished plank; the floor of the chigai-dana is also of polished wood. A large and deep tokonoma may have a mat, or tatami, fitted into the floor; and this is generally bordered with a white strip, and not with black as in the floor tatami. The tatami in this place is found in the houses of the Daimios.
Fig. 113.—Portion of Toko-Bashira.