Kayabuki

What kayabuki is

Kayabuki is a roof built up from thick layers of grass, usually miscanthus or reed. The Japanese word covers no single species; it names whatever grass is used for thatching.

Farmhouses used it widely. The Minami Residence in Nara Prefecture, from the later Edo period with work of 1912, is recorded as a single-storey timber building, thatched under temporary sheet metal with tile in part, 145 square metres in area. The Tottori Residence in Kagawa Prefecture, from the early Meiji period, carries almost the same entry.

Temples used it too. The main hall of Meitokuji in Nagano Prefecture, built in 1713, is recorded as a single-storey timber building of 276 square metres, thatched under temporary sheet metal.

Tea rooms chose it as well. The Tamura Residence tea room in Kyoto, from the late Edo period, is recorded as a single-storey timber building with a Hōgyō-zukuri roof of thatch and Sangawara-buki.

Why the records mention sheet metal

The phrase recurring in all three entries means that the thatch survives beneath a provisional covering of sheet metal. Thatch has to be replaced at intervals, and with reed beds and thatchers both harder to find, many roofs are held in this condition.

Recording the material as thatch while noting the metal in brackets keeps two facts apart: what the roof is, and what it currently wears.

That distinction is worth preserving in writing. Where a photograph and a record seem to disagree, the record is usually describing the type and the photograph the present state. The same convention appears with Hiwadabuki, where a temporary copper covering may be noted over the permanent material.