Gegyo

What a gegyo is

A gegyo is a carved board hung from the peak of a gable to cover the exposed ends of the ridge and purlins. It sits at the top of the gable face, shielding end grain from rain and forming the centre of the gable ornament.

The shapes have names. The gate at Jinkoin in Kyoto Prefecture, from the later Edo period, is described as having a single tier of widely spaced Taruki and a plum-blossom pendant at the peak of its gable.

One type carries fin-like wings to either side. The former Kashiwabara Residence gate in Kochi Prefecture, from the early Showa period, is described as Kirizuma-zukuri with Sangawara-buki, a finned pendant on its gable, and a door of single zelkova boards. The martial arts hall at Kobe University in Hyogo Prefecture, built in 1935, is called formal in character for its Gō-tenjō and finned pendants.

On shrine halls the carving is where individuality shows. Gassan Shrine at Chokaisan Omonoimi in Yamagata Prefecture is described as matching the main hall in size and form but differing in the carving of its side screens, Kaerumata, front panels and pendant.

Where to look, and how to read the record

The pendant hangs at the highest point of the gable. Look up at the end of the ridge from the front, and the carved board below the meeting of the bargeboards is the feature. Smaller ones cover the purlin ends lower down.

It counts as a mark of standing. The Kobe entry cites it beside the coffered ceiling as grounds for calling the building formal, and modern buildings used it for exactly that reason.

When a record names a pendant, note the shape as well. Plum-blossom, finned and turnip forms identify the piece as precisely as a material would.