chuumonrou　中門廊

KEY WORD :　architecture / aristocratic dwellings

1　A Heian period corridor intersected by gates. In the most elaborate Heian period shinden style *shinden-zukuri 寝殿造 a corridor extended south from both the east and west living quarters tai-no-ya 対の屋 toward the fishing and fountain pavilions. Gates were positioned near the centers of the corridors to provide access to the courtyard in front of the shinden or to the corridors leading to the quarters set aside for visitors. 2　In the medieval period, the chuumonrou was shortened to 2- to 3-bays in length. It had a covered entrance that extended south from one corner of a *shoin style residence or the abbot's quarters *houjou 方丈 in a Zen Temple. One side was closed by a board wall while the opposite side remained open. The length continued to be reduced until the chuumonrou almost entirely disappeared in the premodern period. The name chuumonrou was at times simply abbreviated to *chuumon 中門.

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