Karamon 唐門

Official explanation

The elaborately decorated karamon (gate) stands at the entrance to the sacred precincts of the shrine. It has been designated a National Treasure by the Japanese government as representative of the dazzling and ostentatious architecture of the Azuchi-Momoyama period (1568–1603). The entire gate was once covered in black lacquer and the ornamental figures carved in high relief on the gate were gilded or painted in vivid colors. Today, only faint traces of this original coloring are visible.

The gate is said to have survived from the lavishly ornamented Fushimi Castle built by Toyotomi Hideyoshi (1537–1598) as a retirement residence. After Fushimi Castle was dismantled in the early 1620s, the gate was first moved to Nijo Castle, which at the time was serving as headquarters of the Tokugawa authorities in Kyoto. It was later moved to Konchi-in, a sub-temple of Nanzenji Temple that was closely associated with the new Tokugawa rulers. When the Tokugawa family fell from power in 1868, Konchi-in was forced to sell the gate. It became the property of the Toyokuni Shrine and was subsequently moved to its present location. The calligraphy on the plaque affixed to the center of the gate is the work of Emperor Goyōzei (1571–1617).

出典: 地域観光資源の多言語解説文データベース（観光庁） — www.mlit.go.jp/tagengo-db. この英語解説文は観光庁の地域観光資源の多言語解説整備支援事業で作成しました。
Source: Japan Tourism Agency, Multilingual Explanation Database. This English text was produced by the Japan Tourism Agency's multilingual explanation project and is shown unedited. Opening hours and services may have changed since it was written.