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Japanese Gardens

Japanese gardens are characterized by their refinement, delicacy and subtlety. In contrast to the carefully arranged trees and rocks of Western-style gardens, Japanese gardens create natural compositions in an attempt to suggest the wider environment as a whole.

Japanese landscape artists followed three basic principles when planning a garden: reduced scale; symbolism; and “borrowed views.” The artists would try to reproduce broad scenic expanses such as rivers and mountains in a small space, use one natural element to evoke another (such as white sand to symbolize the sea), and draw on the background to enhance the foreground.

Stone lanterns were first introduced to the Japanese garden by tea-master Sen-no-Rikkyu in the sixteenth century. Tea ceremonies were often held in the evening, and the lanterns were used to guide guests through the specially-designed garden to the tea room. Four basic types of lantern were used: ikekomi-gata, the oldest type of lantern, have a base that is buried in the ground; tachi-gata are lanterns mounted on pedestals; oki-gata are small lanterns based on the designs from Asuka period temples; and yukimi-gata have broad roofs to hold snow in winter.

Oribe

Oribe lanterns are among the oldest type of garden lantern and were designed in the Momoyama period by the samurai and tea-master Furuta Oribe. An ikekomi-gata style, Oribe lanterns are planted directly into the ground, have a circular shape and a thick roof topped with a lotus bud. They are often decorated with a Buddha carved into the base.

A former military official of Mino Province and commander of Nishigaoka Castle at Yamashiro, Oribe is best known for the changes he made to the tea-room and the tea house garden. In contrast to the natural, austere look of the previous wabi style, Oribe looked for a more visual effect, adding specially-designed windows, naturally-shaped stepping stones and his unique lanterns.

Rankei

Rankei lanterns have an arched pedestal that allows the lantern’s light to reflect in the water below. Believed to have been designed by the artist Taishin, the lanterns are named after Rankei Doryu, the first recognized Chinese Zen master to reach Japan.

Kasuga

Kasuga lanterns are modeled after the lanterns found in the Shinto shrines of Nara and are decorated with animals from Nara’s deer park. A typical pedestal lantern, the original style dates back to 700 AD.