JAANUS / sekitou 石塔

sekitou　石塔

KEY WORD :　architecture / buildings & structures

Also read ishitou. A generic term for pagodas or stupas made of stone. It includes multiple-storied stone pagodas　such as the five-ring pagoda *gorintou 五輪塔, memorial or grave stones *kasatouba 笠塔婆, pagoda-like markers made of stone *itabi 板碑 and *hide 碑伝, and egg-shaped or oval stones on a square on octagonal stone base, used originally by the Zen 禅 sect, and called *rantou 卵塔 or *muhoutou 無縫塔. The multiple-storied monuments are frequently dedicated to Buddha and have no interior, but some have space hewn out in which to place a very small image. Like timber pagodas *tou 塔, stone pagodas always have an odd number of stories. Among those designated as important cultural assets, many 13, 9, 7, and 5-storied stone pagodas are extant and are in quite good condition. The only exception to the odd number rule is the10-storied pagoda *Juujuutou 十重塔 at Injouji 引接寺 (1386) in Kyoto. The tallest extant stone pagoda is 13-storied (14.12m) *juusanjuu-no-tou 十三重の塔 and constructed at Hannyaji 般若寺 (1253) in Nara. The finial *sourin 相輪, was replaced in the Shouwa period, but the original has been preserved at the temple. Each tier is square and the corners curve upward. The oldest sekitou have beautiful eave curvature called shinzori 真反り and the vertical, exterior surfaces are cut perpendicular to the ground. Characteristically, the tiers are reduced in size as they rise, resulting in a strongly slanting silhouette, seen in the Hannyaji stone pagoda. Although almost all sekitou slant from bottom to top, the degree of slope varies: 5-storied pagodas narrow only slightly, while 9- and 13-storied ones narrow more obviously. The tiers are closely spaced and the lowest tier is usually set on a high base. There is no exact uniformity in the dimensions of the tiers, but their shapes are similar. Before the Kamakura period, soft stone like tuff *gyoukaigan 凝灰岩, was used, but during the Kamakura period granite, kakougan 花崗岩, became popular. Images of Buddha are often carved on the shaft of the first story. More rarely, where stories are widely spaced, images or Sanskrit characters are carved in all the spaces between the tiers. Construction dates of the pagodas are also sometimes carved into the pagodas. Further examples include Hakubuji 白峯寺 (1324) in Kagawa prefecture, a 13-storied stone pagoda, 5.62m high. This is the east pagoda, of an east-west pair. At one time it had doors and is hollow to the 7th story. The large proportions of the double dais emphasize the narrow size of the tiers and shaft, jiku-ishi 軸石. A 7- 8c 7-storied stone pagoda survives at Eizanji 栄山寺, in Nara. The entire, original pagoda remains, even the finial. The lowest part of the high shaft has Sanskrit carved on it. The 7-storied sekitou at Sekininji 赤人寺 (1318) in Shiga prefecture, 2.36m high, has foliate panels *kouzama 格狭間 on four sides of the base and Buddhist images on the shaft below the first tier.

*houkyouintou 宝筺印塔：
An'youin 安養院 (Kanagawa)

*tasoutou 多層塔：
Hannyaji Juusanjuu sekitou 般若寺十三重石塔 (Kyoto)

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