Traditional lighting equipment of Japan

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"Chōchin" redirects here. For the 1987 film, see Chōchin (film).
The Momiji Matsuri もみじ祭 festival at Hiyoshi Taisha shrine

The traditional lighting equipment of Japan includes the andon (行灯), the bonbori (雪洞), the chōchin (提灯), and the tōrō (灯篭).

Andon

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See also: Andon (manufacturing)
File:行燈（あんどん）8163423.jpg
An andon

The andon (ja:行灯) is a lamp consisting of paper stretched over a frame of bamboo, wood or metal. The paper protected the flame from the wind. Burning oil in a stone or ceramic holder, with a wick of cotton, provided the light. Rapeseed oil was popular. Candles were also used, but their higher price made them less popular. A lower-priced alternative was sardine oil.

The andon became popular in the Edo period. Early on, the andon was handheld; it could also be placed on a stand or hung on a wall. The okiandon was most common indoors. Many had a vertical box shape, with an inner stand for the light. Some had a drawer on the bottom to facilitate refilling and lighting. A handle on top made it portable. A variety was the Enshū andon. One explanation attributes it to Kobori Enshu, who lived in the late Azuchi-Momoyama Period and early Edo period. Tubular in shape, it had an opening instead of a drawer. Another variety was the Ariake andon, a bedside lamp. The kakeandon under the eaves of a shop, often bearing the name of the merchant, was a common sight in the towns.

The expression hiru andon, or "daytime lamp," meant someone or something that seemed to serve no purpose. In dramatizations of the story of the forty-seven ronin, Oishi Yoshio is often given this description.

Bonbori

The bonbori (ぼんぼり・雪洞?) is a kind of Japanese paper lamp used in the open. It normally has an hexagonal profile and is used during festivals.[1] It can either hang from a wire or stand on a pole. Famous is the Bonbori Festival (ぼんぼり祭り Bonbori Matsuri?), held annually at Tsurugaoka Hachiman-gū in Kamakura, Kanagawa. Artists paint on the about 400 bonbori erected for the occasion on the shrine's grounds.[2]

  • Kō-no-ma 鴻の間, Nishi Hongan-ji, Kyoto

  • Nishi Honganji, Kyoto

  • Youkoukan07s4592.jpg

    Yōkōkan Teien (養浩館庭園) in Fukui

  • Aki-no-nanakusa 01.JPG

    Kangetsu-kai 観月会 at Ise Jingū

  • Kake-bonbori 懸雪洞, The Mitama Matsuri festival at Yasukuni Jinja

  • Tokyo-festival-lights.jpg

    The Mitama Matsuri festival at Yasukuni Jinja

  • お雛様-hinamatsuri-dolls-lamp.jpg

    Hinamatsuri

  • Hōshi no yu 05.jpg

    Hōshi Onsen 法師温泉, built 1895 in Gunma

Chōchin

The chōchin (ja:提灯) has a frame of split bamboo wound in a spiral. Paper or silk protect the flame from wind. The spiral structure permits it to be collapsed into the basket at the bottom. The chōchin hangs from a hook at the top. In present-day Japan, plastic chōchin with electric bulbs are produced as novelties, souvenirs, and for matsuri and events. The earliest record of a chōchin dates to 1085, and one appears in a 1536 illustration.

The akachōchin, or red lantern, marks an izakaya.

  • Minatogawai-Jinja Massha Kusumoto-Inari-Jinja3.JPG

    Minatogawa Shrine in Kōbe

  • Oohasiya Inn.jpg

    Ōhashi-ya (大橋屋), established in 1649, built 1705 in Aichi

  • Hozomon closeup.jpg

    Sensō-ji, in Asakusa

  • Yatadera-temple Kyoto.JPG

    Yata-dera (矢田寺) Temple in Kyōto

  • Thousand lights of Cock Festival at Hanazono Shrine in Japan.jpg

    Thousand lights of Cock Festival at Hanazono Jinja in Tōkyo

  • Kuniyoshi Utagawa, Japan, Woman with fan.jpg

    Kuniyoshi Utagawa (1797–1861)

Tōrō

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Main article: Tōrō

Originally used in the broad sense to mean any lantern, the word tōrō came to mean a lamp of stone, bronze, iron, wood, or another heavy material. These illuminate the grounds of Buddhist temples, Shinto shrines, Japanese gardens, and other places that include tradition in their decor. The earlier oil and candles have given way to the electric bulb.

  • KonpiraKouTourou01.jpg

    Tasuke Toro 太助灯籠, built 1838 in Kagawa (Kotohira-gū)

  • Isuzuchaya 五十鈴茶屋 and Akafuku 赤福, in Ise, Mie

  • Hiyoshi Taisha Momiji 3.jpg

    The Momiji Matsuri もみじ祭 festival at Hiyoshi Taisha Shrine

References

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See also

External links

  • Japanese gardening, Lanterns. Accessed on February 2, 2010
  1. ↑ Iwanami Kōjien (広辞苑?) Japanese dictionary, 6th Edition (2008), DVD version
  2. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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