What degōshi means
Degōshi is a timber lattice fixed so that it projects beyond the outer wall, over a window or across the front of a building. Most stand on a shallow base or a panelled lower section, with vertical bars rising above it. The name distinguishes it from a lattice set flush with the wall. Sliding panels are fitted behind the lattice, and the arrangement admits light and air while screening the room from passers-by.
It is one of the main elements of a townhouse façade. In a Machiya, the room facing the street was fronted with a projecting lattice that hid the shop or reception room from outside while letting the occupants watch the street. The record for the east main house of the former Ishibashi family describes a lattice set across the front of the street wing with an earth-floored passage at its east end, and the record for the Sono family house describes the part west of the entrance as fitted with degōshi and the part to the east as a Western-style front in weatherboarding.
The lattice is also common on gatehouses. The rooms beside the gateway served as quarters for a gatekeeper or for storage, and a projecting lattice let the occupant watch the approach. The Tanaka family's gatehouse is recorded with degōshi and a guard window, and the gatehouse of the Onishi family (Mizuho Vinegar) with a four-and-a-half-mat room fitted with degōshi west of the gate.
Telling it apart and reading the records
Material and position relative to the wall separate it from related forms. Mushiko-mado has bars of plastered clay set flush with the wall, mostly on the upper floor. Renji-mado is a window of slender uprights at even intervals, usually set within the wall. Degōshi is wooden, projects outward and is found mainly on the ground floor at the front.
Records use phrases such as fitted with degōshi or with degōshi across the front. Where the record says which room the lattice fronts, it helps in reading how the building was used: in front of a shop room it belongs to the business face of the house, in front of a reception room to the domestic face, and beside a gateway it was a lookout.
On site, check how far the lattice stands out from the wall and whether it rests on a base. Many townhouse lattices were replaced by shop windows or glazed doors, and sometimes only part survives. The spacing and thickness of the bars vary with region and trade and often give a street its character.
References
- 薗家住宅主屋｜国指定文化財等データベース（文化庁）
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00015071
- 旧石橋家住宅東主屋｜国指定文化財等データベース（文化庁）
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00009627
- 田中家住宅長屋門｜国指定文化財等データベース（文化庁）
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00007648
- 瑞穂酢（大西家住宅）門屋及び中門｜国指定文化財等データベース（文化庁）
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00014519
Last verified: 2026.09.26