What a romon is
A romon is a tall gate that looks two-storeyed but has a roof only over its upper level. Above the lower posts there is no roof; instead, a tier of brackets called koshigumi carries the upper floor out to a gallery with a balustrade all the way round. The JAANUS dictionary notes that although romon are often called two-storey gates, the upper level is not usable space.
A nijumon, by contrast, has a roof running round above the lower storey and a second roof above. Whether you can see two roofs is the test. The Great South Gate of Todaiji in Nara, a National Treasure of 1199, is recorded as a five-bay, three-entrance nijumon.
Records state a romon's size by front bays and entrances. The gate of Hannyaji in Nara, a National Treasure of the Kamakura period, is a one-bay, one-entrance romon with a tiled hip-and-gable roof; the gate of Tsushima Shrine in Aichi Prefecture, from 1592, is three bays with one central entrance and a cypress-bark roof.
Names versus forms, and what to look for
A gate's name does not always match its form. The romon of Mizuta Tenmangu in Chikugo, Fukuoka Prefecture, from the late Edo period, carries the name, but the Agency for Cultural Affairs describes it as a three-bay, three-entrance nijumon. Describe the form from the record, whatever the gate is called.
On site, look at the junction between the levels. A projecting roof all the way round means a nijumon; a balustraded gallery with no roof means a romon. Most have hip-and-gable roofs.
Romon are common as the front gates of shrines and also serve as temple guardian gates. The upper level is generally there for height and dignity rather than as a room.
References
- JAANUS (Japanese Architecture and Art Net Users System): romon
- https://projects.mcah.columbia.edu/jaanus/record/romon
- JAANUS (Japanese Architecture and Art Net Users System): nijumon
- https://projects.mcah.columbia.edu/jaanus/record/nijumon
- Agency for Cultural Affairs, Database of National Cultural Properties: Hannyaji Romon
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/102/2498
- Agency for Cultural Affairs, Database of National Cultural Properties: Tsushima Shrine Romon
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/102/1233
- Agency for Cultural Affairs, Database of National Cultural Properties: Todaiji Great South Gate
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/102/2435
- Agency for Cultural Affairs, Database of National Cultural Properties: Mizuta Tenmangu Romon
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00015517
Last verified: 2026.10.04