Kounji Temple Bell Tower

What Is Kounji Temple Bell Tower?

Kounji Temple Bell Tower (功運寺鐘楼, Kōun-ji Shōrō) is the bell tower of Kounji, also known as Banshoin Kounji, a Soto Zen temple in Kamitakada, Nakano Ward, Tokyo; built around 1749 in the mid-Edo period and moved to its present site in 1914, it was registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Building) of Japan in 2014.

It is a small structure: one bay square, meaning just four corner posts, set on a tall base of stacked stone, with a hip-and-gable (Irimoya-zukuri) roof of round-and-flat tiles (Hongawarabuki) and a floor area of 6.0 square meters. Of the three registered buildings at Kounji, the bell tower is the only one that goes back to the Edo period, older than the other two by more than 150 years. It was moved here in 1914, the same year Banshoin, one of the two temples that later formed Kounji, relocated from Ushigome. Where it stood before that is not recorded by either the Agency for Cultural Affairs or Nakano City.

Why Kounji Temple Bell Tower Was Registered

Kounji Temple Bell Tower was registered for its contribution to Japan's historic landscape. The Agency for Cultural Affairs highlights the rich carving applied at key points of the frame, and Nakano City names the same quality as the heart of its value.

A one-bay belfry is among the smallest buildings a temple has. Here that small frame carries bracket sets packed closely enough to fill the spaces between the posts, along with carved beam ends and decorative struts. Lavishing that much work on a building of 6.0 square meters is what gives Kounji Temple Bell Tower its character.

What to Look for at the Bell Tower

Posts and Ceiling

The four posts of Kounji Temple Bell Tower are round and lean very slightly inward as they rise, a technique called uchikorobi. Their tops are tapered (a finish known as chimaki), so each post narrows softly just below the bracketing. Three tiers of tie beams lock the posts together, from a low rail up through a Kōryō rainbow beam to the head tie, and the space where the bell hangs is closed with a coffered ceiling (goten-jo).

Brackets and Eaves

A flat plate runs around the top of the posts, and on it sit one-step projecting bracket sets (demono) arranged in the close-set tsumegumi manner, with brackets between the posts as well as on them. The effect is an almost continuous band of joinery under the roof. The eaves use a double layer of closely spaced rafters.

Carving

The carving is what most visitors remember. The ends of the head tie project as Kibana cut in openwork, hollowed through like a basket, while the ends of the rainbow beam are carved in the shape of lions. Above the rainbow beam sit frog-leg struts (Kaerumata). All of this is high up, above the tall stone base, so you will follow the shapes more easily from a few steps away at an angle than from directly below.

Visiting Kounji Temple Bell Tower

Kounji Temple Bell Tower stands inside the temple grounds, registered under the same lot number as the main gate. The temple does not say how close visitors may go or whether the stone base may be climbed, and it publishes no visiting hours. If you want to see Kounji Temple Bell Tower, contact the temple beforehand.

This is a working temple building. Do not climb the base or touch the bell or its striker; look from outside. The temple does not state its photography policy either, so ask first. Directions and general visiting notes are on the Kounji Temple page.