Korinji Temple Bell Tower

What is the Korinji Temple Bell Tower?

The Korinji Temple Bell Tower (光林寺鐘楼, Kōrin-ji Shōrō) is the Shōrō in the northeast corner of a Jōdo-shū temple precinct in Shinonoi Komatsubara, Nagano City, built in 1830 and registered as a Tangible Cultural Property on December 5, 2019. It is a timber structure with a hip-and-gable roof of pan tiles (Irimoya-zukuri, Sangawara-buki), covering 8.9 square meters, and its sides are left open between the posts.

Its base comes in two stages. A retaining wall was built up in the corner of the precinct, a masonry platform was laid on top of that, and the bell tower stands on the platform. The precinct is already on high ground; the Korinji bell tower was given one more step of height.

Nagano City's cultural property database says the 1830 structure was itself a rebuilding, and that parts damaged in the Zenkoji earthquake of 1847, which devastated the Nagano basin, were repaired in 1849. The Korinji Temple Bell Tower rode out that shock and was patched up two years later.

Why the Korinji Temple Bell Tower was registered

The Korinji Temple Bell Tower was registered as number 20-0551 under the criterion of structures that contribute to the historic landscape. The sutra repository and the main gate were registered the same day. The Agency for Cultural Affairs calls the bell tower a symbol of the hilltop precinct, and that role as a landmark on its wall is at the heart of the assessment.

The building itself repays a close look. It follows the Zenshūyō Zen style, with Degumi bracket sets on the posts and additional sets placed between them in the Tsumegumi manner. On a structure this small, filling the intercolumnar spaces with brackets crowds the eaves with timberwork and gives the Korinji bell tower a weight out of proportion to its footprint.

Strong carving adds to that density. A landmark silhouette combined with tightly worked detail is what the registration recognizes.

What to look for at the Korinji Temple Bell Tower

Dragons between the tie beams

High on the posts of the Korinji Temple Bell Tower, between a tie beam shaped like a curved koryo beam and the head beam above it, dragon carvings are set into the frame. With the sides open you can see them from any direction, so walk around and compare how they face on each side.

Pine and hawk among the brackets

Above the head beam lies a flat plate, and above that, between the closely spaced bracket sets, are carvings of pine trees and hawks. You are looking up into the eaves here, so stand back a little from the foot of the wall to see the row of brackets and the carvings together.

Wall and platform

From below, the Korinji bell tower stacks up in layers: retaining wall, masonry platform, open post frame, hip-and-gable roof. That stacking is why the roof is visible even from the bottom of the approach steps.

Visiting the Korinji Temple Bell Tower

The Korinji Temple Bell Tower is in the northeast corner of the precinct; from the front of the main hall, look toward the northeast. Because it stands on a raised wall, you can study the exterior and the carvings under the eaves from the precinct without climbing up. Directions to the temple are on the Korinji Temple page.

No guidance has been published on climbing onto the wall and platform, or on ringing the bell. Mind the edge of the wall when you approach, and ask the temple before going up or taking photographs.