Taiheizuka

What a taiheizuka is

A taiheizuka is a vertical strut that stands on a Kōryō in gable framing, swelling towards its base in the shape of a jar and carrying the ridge or the beam above it.

Descriptions in the National Cultural Properties Database treat it and the beam beneath it as a single unit. The main hall of Kasuga Shrine in Oita Prefecture has a gable framed by two curved beams with this strut between them; the shrine gate, built in 1845, is described as tied by head-beams shaped like curved beams, with three-block brackets, this strut standing on a curved beam across the gable, and double rows of closely spaced rafters.

Gates use it too. The middle gate at Hashikuraji in Tokushima Prefecture is described as having widely spaced rafters, the same gable arrangement, and a Gō-tenjō throughout, in a composition the entry calls large and commanding.

Carved wings are usually fixed to either side of the strut. The great entrance hall at Ninnaji in Kyoto, built in 1890, is described as carrying fine carving on both the Kaerumata and these wings.

How it differs from the frog-leg strut

The two parts share a location but not a shape. The frog-leg type is broad and low, widening towards its base and sitting on top of a beam; this one stands upright. Records frequently name them in the same breath, as the Ninnaji entry does.

Look for it at the gable end. Walk round to the side at right angles to the ridge, look up into the triangle of the roof, and the horizontal curved beam with a strut rising from it becomes visible. Where two beams are stacked, the strut sits between them.

One variant spelling of the Japanese term exists. The records of the Agency for Cultural Affairs use the standard form.