mushakakushi　武者隠

KEY WORD :　architecture / general terms

Lit. hidden warriors. A small room closed off from the raised-floor area *joudan 上段, by two fixed panels and two ornate tassel-handled sliding doors *choudaigamae 帳台構え in palaces or castles. Example to be found in Nijoujou, Ninomaru Oohiroma 二条城, 二の丸大広間 (late 16c - early 17c), Kyoto. Guardsmen were stationed in the room to protect the shogun or highest ranking person seated on the joudan. Some scholars believe that the mushakakushi was originally for storage or sleeping. This is suggested by the existence of two rooms behind the ornate doors in the guest hall, Koujouin Kyakuden 光浄院客殿 at Onjouji 園城寺 (1601), Shiga prefecture which is a small room called a *nando 納戸, a type of room found in vernacular housing for storage or sleeping.

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