Chohoji Temple Tahoto Pagoda

Chohoji Temple Tahoto Pagoda: A Pure Japanese-Style Pagoda

The Chohoji Temple Tahoto Pagoda (長保寺多宝塔, Chohoji Tahoto) is an early Muromachi-period two-storey pagoda at Chohoji in Kami, Shimotsu-cho, Kainan City, Wakayama Prefecture, designated a National Treasure under the old system in 1904 and a National Treasure in 1953.

The Agency for Cultural Affairs records the Chohoji Temple Tahoto Pagoda as a three-bay tahoto with a tiled roof and dates it to 1357. Wakayama Prefecture says the central pillar carries an ink inscription of that year.

Why It Was Designated

The Agency describes the Chohoji Temple Tahoto Pagoda as purely Japanese in style, well balanced between its lower and upper storeys, and one of the finest surviving tahoto in its details, though the altar platform inside is Zen style. At designation its date was unknown and thought slightly later than the main hall.

The temple notes that the pagoda is named in a fund-raising appeal of 1344 for a hall dedicated to Kobo Daishi, suggesting it already stood by then, which does not match the date on the pillar. Wakayama Prefecture calls it a representative tahoto of its period.

What to Look For

According to Kainan City and the temple, the very low plastered dome and the gently pitched roofs give the pagoda its sense of stability, and the strong bracketing, elegant frog-leg struts and raised coffered ceiling show vigorous workmanship inside and out.

Inside, the altar is Zen style, with graceful arabesque carving. The temple says the front railing, with no rail beam and a pierced mesh of tomoe crests between the curled posts and the base, is unlike any other.

Visiting the Tahoto Pagoda

Chohoji is currently closed to visitors while repairs continue after a landslide caused by torrential rain in June 2023. The temple's website expects the closure to last another 2 to 3 years. The reopening status and normal visiting conditions are on the Chohoji Temple page.