Futaiji Temple Pagoda

The Surviving Lower Storey of a Kamakura Pagoda

The Futaiji Temple Pagoda (不退寺塔婆) is a pagoda of which the lower storey of a two-storey tahoto survives of the late Kamakura period in Horencho, Nara City, Nara Prefecture, and was designated an Important Cultural Property on April 23, 1908 (Agency for Cultural Affairs).

The Agency records three bays square, single-storey, with a pyramidal roof of pantiles, originally the lower storey of a tahoto, designated together with seven pieces of old timber; designation number 00480.

The 1908 date in the Agency record is that of its designation under the former law.

The Lower Storey of a Tahoto

The Futaiji Temple Pagoda is three bays square, with a pyramidal roof of pantiles, and was originally the lower storey of a two-storey tahoto (Agency for Cultural Affairs). The Agency dates it to the late Kamakura period and designates seven pieces of old timber with it. Its upper storey is gone, and the lower storey survives under a pyramidal roof.

According to the Japan Tourism Agency, Futaiji is said to have been founded in 847 by the early Heian poet and courtier Ariwara no Narihira; the land had belonged to Emperor Heizei and passed to Prince Abo and then to Narihira.

Why It Is an Important Cultural Property

The Agency record has no commentary; the structure and date set out what was designated. It is the late Kamakura lower storey of a tahoto, designated with seven pieces of old timber (Agency for Cultural Affairs).

What to Look For

Look at the form of a tahoto's lower storey capped by a pyramidal roof (Agency for Cultural Affairs).

Visiting

It is owned by Futaiji Temple (Agency for Cultural Affairs). No official information on visiting hours or fees was found. The main hall, pagoda and south gate are introduced together on the Futaiji Temple page.