Chōchin

The traditional lighting equipment of Japan includes the , the , the , and the .

The is a lamp consisting of paper stretched over a frame of bamboo, wood or metal. The paper protected the flame from the wind. Burning oil in a stone, metal, or ceramic holder, with a wick of cotton or pith, provided the light. They were usually open on the top and bottom, with one side that could be lifted to provide access. Rapeseed oil was popular. Candles were also used, but their higher price made them less popular. A lower-priced alternative was sardine oil.

The became popular in the Edo period (1603–1867). Early on, the was handheld; it could also be placed on a stand or hung on a wall. The was most common indoors. Many had a vertical box shape with an inner stand for the light. Some had a drawer on the bottom to facilitate refilling and lighting. A handle on top made it portable. A variety was the . One explanation attributes it to Kobori Enshu, who lived in the late Azuchi-Momoyama period and early Edo period. Tubular in shape, it had an opening instead of a drawer. Another variety was the , a bedside lamp. The under the eaves of a shop, often bearing the name of the merchant, was a common sight in the towns.

The expression , or "daytime lamp," meant someone or something that seemed to serve no purpose. In dramatizations of the story of the forty-seven ronin, Oishi Yoshio is often given this description.

File:Andon LCCN2008660135.jpg, print showing an being carried indoors
File:行燈（あんどん）8163423.jpg, An standing outdoors with one side open
File:Mishimajuku-jikuchiandon 2013.jpg, hung in Mishima, Shizuoka
File:京都・東山花灯路清水坂行灯.jpg, Example of a cylindrical at the Festival in Arashiyama, Kyoto
File:SekienAoando.jpg, The of Japanese folklore.

The is a kind of Japanese paper lamp used in the open during festivals. It normally has an hexagonal profile and a rather wide, open top. It can either hang from a wire or stand on a pole. Famous is the , held annually at Tsurugaoka Hachiman-gū in Kamakura, Kanagawa. Artists paint on the about 400 erected for the occasion on the shrine's grounds.

File:Bonbori001.jpg, lining the at a Bonbori Festival
File:Youkoukan07s4592.jpg, in Fukui
File:Aki-no-nanakusa 01.JPG, at Ise Jingū
File:Yasukuni Mitama Night.JPG, at the festival at Yasukuni Jinja

A relative of the Chinese paper lantern, the has a frame of split bamboo wound in a spiral. Paper or silk protect the flame from wind. The spiral structure permits it to be collapsed into the basket at the bottom. The is used outdoors, either carried or hung outside the house. In present-day Japan, plastic with electric bulbs are produced as novelties, souvenirs, and for and events. The earliest record of a dates to 1085, and one appears in a 1536 illustration.

The , or red lantern, marks an . In Japanese folklore, the appears as a , the .

Gifu is known for its Gifu lanterns, a kind of made from .Gifu Paper Lanterns
Japan National Tourist Organization. Accessed April 30, 2008.

File:Minatogawai-Jinja Massha Kusumoto-Inari-Jinja3.JPG, at Minatogawa Shrine in Kōbe
File:野崎八幡神社 - panoramio (3).jpg, White decorated with
File:Senso-ji Kaminarimon Laterne.jpg, Oversized at the Kaminarimon in Sensō-ji
File:Cyochin2.jpg, lantern outside an
File:Kuniyoshi Utagawa, Japan, Woman with fan.jpg, print by Utagawa Kuniyoshi showing a decorated with a landscape
File:Yatadera-temple Kyoto.JPG, Yata-dera (矢田寺) Temple in Kyōto
File:Gifu cyouchin0000000001.JPG,
File:Isshiki Manabinoyakata museum ac (1).jpg, Massive at Isshiki Manabi no Yakata museum

Originally used in the broad sense to mean any lantern, the term came to refer to a lamp of stone, bronze, iron, wood, or another heavy material. These illuminate the grounds of Buddhist temples, Shinto shrines, Japanese gardens, and other places that include tradition in their decor. The earlier use of oil and candles has in the modern day been replaced by electric bulbs.

Stone

File:北投不動明王石窟石燈籠.jpg, Stone lantern in Taiwan
File:Wuzhen old town.JPG, Water lantern in Zhejiang Province
File:Kasuga-taisha30bs4592.jpg, of the type
File:IMG 2660.jpg, Three legged . One leg rests on ground, two in water.

Bronze

File:Chi Lin Nunnery 10, Mar 06.JPG, Bronze and stone lanterns in Chi Lin Nunnery, Hongkong
File:Horyu-ji43s3200.jpg, Bronze lantern at Hōryū-ji
File:NaraTodaijiL0202.jpg, 8th century bronze lantern at Tōdai-ji (National Treasure)
File:Latarnia w Miyajima.JPG, Bronze lantern at Itsukushima Shrine

Wooden

File:Kuroki-toro (Reiwa Daijokyu).JPG, Wooden ()
File:Fukutokuinari shrine 福徳稲荷神社 - panoramio.jpg, Wooden placed between stone at Fukutokuinari shrine

See also

*
* Physalis alkekengi, the Japanese lantern plant

References

External links

* Japanese Gardening
Lanterns
Accessed on February 2, 2010

{{Shinto shrine
Japanese culture
Japan
Light fixtures