Machiya
Machiya ( Japanese 町 家 / 町 屋 ) are traditional wooden townhouses in Japan .
introduction
Machiya (town houses) and Nōka (farmhouses) form the two main representatives of the historical settlement architecture of Japan, summarized under the term Minka . Machiya usually housed urban traders, called Chōnin ( 町 人 ). The word machiya is made up of two Japanese characters ( Kanji ): machi ( 町 ) means 'city', while ya ( 家 or 屋 ) means something like 'house' or 'business'.
Typology
Machiya are usually directly connected to the public street space and serve as both residential and commercial buildings. The very narrow street front and the relatively wide building depth are typical. The public area of the building is located on the ground floor on the street side and can accommodate a workshop, an office or a sales area. There is also a shop window that can be closed by sliding or folding elements. These mostly dark wooden elements shape the appearance of the public street space, which is reinforced by the row houses.
Building shape
Most of the machiya are so-called Hirai houses, with an eaves facing the street and a narrow roof overhang. In isolated cases, however, buildings can also be found that have the gable on their narrow side and the eaves on their long side. The length of the street front was called maguchi ( 間 口 ) and was an expression of the wealth of the building owners . The length was given in ken ( 間 ), a traditional Japanese measure of length . Usually the street front of a machiya was 3 to 3.5 ken long, which corresponds to about 6 meters. However, isolated buildings could also be up to 10 ken wide (18–20 meters).
Layout
The plan of a machiya is long and narrow. This is due on the one hand to the high tax levies, which are based on the length of the street front, and on the other hand to the concept of privacy. At the back of the building is a small courtyard with a small warehouse. The goods stored here were safe from robbers.
The basic idea of the internal building structure has a lot in common with other historical Japanese living typologies, for example with the Nōka.
Access to the living area is through a large door, also called ōdo ( 大 戸 ). The adjoining access area ( 土 間 , doma ) with an open kitchen only has a clay floor. From here you can get to one or more living rooms ( 居室 部 , kyoshitsubu ), which have a slightly raised wooden floor covered with tatami mats. The narrow, elongated access area also has the function of connecting the shop on the street front with the warehouse in the backyard, so that it became a lively space. With this property, the development area was also referred to as Tōriniwa ( 通 り 庭 ). However, this was always taboo for the public. This type of machiya was typical of the Kansai region and western Japan. In the Kantō region, a type could also be found in which the entrance area remained unpaved and was called maedoma ( 前 土 間 ).
The largest living space is usually located at the rear of the building, with a view over the garden and towards the warehouse. The Shōji sliding doors form the walls of the rooms and allow - as in most Japanese houses - a great deal of variability. The doors can be opened, closed or completely removed. The room size, number and shape can be relatively easily adapted to the current situation.
Gardens
The gardens at the rear of the machiya are called tsuboniwa ( 坪 庭 ). As a rule, they are exactly the size of two tatami mats (approx. 180 × 180 cm). The original purpose is to illuminate and ventilate the interior. Because the machiya are very close together, the small gardens have a very introverted atmosphere. There are no views of the area.
The users always attach great importance to the design of the gardens. They are the machiya's prestige object. Some of the tsuboniwa can be designed very simply and follow a very puristic approach. You only find a plant or a stone basin on gray gravel. Others can be a complex composition of plants, stones, bridges and other design elements.
The gardens should be seen directly from the interior and complement life in a machiya in terms of design. The rooms open directly to the gardens. A direct connection can be established using sliding doors. Some machiya also have a kind of wooden balcony as an intermediate zone , called engawa ( 縁 側 ) , between the interior and exterior .
Usually the tsuboniwa are a surprise to the house's visitors. One cannot guess from the street space that there is a tsuboniwa and the intensity with which it was designed by the owners.
history
The oldest known machiya (Kuriyama house in Gojon, Nara) dates back to 1607. However, it is known that the term “machiya” was already used in the middle of the Heian period . At that time the term was used for small houses that are to the right and left of the market square, facing the street and have a small area for a shop.
Over time, original and highly perishable were roofing , for example thatch or wood shingles with stones attached, replaced by durable roofing tiles. Walls with exposed wooden beams were covered with thick layers of plaster. Both were done in order to achieve a longer durability as well as a greater fire resistance period. In addition, flat, dark upper floor rooms were transformed into high, full-fledged living spaces.
gallery
Historical textile shop in Nara
Model of a machiya in Kyoto
Street in Imai
See also
Web links
Individual evidence
- ^ Mira Locher: Traditional Japanese Architecture. An Exploration of Elements and Forms . Tuttle Pub, 2010, ISBN 978-4-8053-0980-3 , pp. 154 .