What tateita-bari means
Tateita-bari is cladding of boards set vertically side by side on walls and fences. The joints are usually covered with narrow battens, and records then describe it as vertical boarding with battens.
It is the counterpart of weatherboarding, in which horizontal boards overlap, and gives an elevation with strong vertical lines. Yamato-bari, with boards set alternately front and back, is a form of vertical boarding, and charred Yakisugi boards may be fixed vertically. Some buildings use vertical boarding on one face and weatherboarding on others.
Reading the records
Records often give the method face by face. The barn of the Takahashi family in Nichinan, Miyazaki, has vertical boarding on its south face and weatherboarding elsewhere, changing the direction of the boards within one building. The shop and house of the Kubo draper in Yasuda, Kochi, is said to keep the atmosphere of its heyday in the vertical boarding of its gable. The fence of the Kobayashi family house in Kiryu, Gunma, is an open board fence of vertical boarding with battens.
On site, check whether the boards run vertically or overlap horizontally. Vertical boards with narrow battens over the joints are board-and-batten tateita-bari.
References
- 高橋家住宅納屋｜国指定文化財等データベース（文化庁）
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00008395
- 久保呉服店店舗兼主屋｜国指定文化財等データベース（文化庁）
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/101/00006755
- 小林家住宅（旧小武織物有限会社）塀｜国指定文化財等データベース（文化庁）
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00010109
Last verified: 2026.09.27