ebisubashira　恵比須柱

KEY WORD :　architecture / folk dwellings

1　A structural post considered sacred in an Edo period vernacular house *minka 民家 in most areas of Japan. The ebisubashira, was in most houses second in importance to the principal Daikoku post *daikokubashira 大黒柱, and was believed to be an embodiment of *Ebisu 恵比須, who, like *Daikokuten 大黒天, was one of the seven gods of good fortune *shichifukujin 七福神 and prosperity. Though in most cases it was more slender than the often massive daikokubashira, the ebisubashira was usually sturdier than the other posts in the building. Its structural　significance　varied, and although, like the daikokubashira, it was often sited at a structurally important point in the building, its dimensions were more symbolic than structural. The position of the ebisubashira also varied, but by and large　it was sited in close juxtaposition　to　the daikokubashira, most frequently along the boundary between the floored area, kyoshitsubu 居室部, and unfloored area *doma 土間 of the house. Examples can be found in vernacular houses in parts of Aomori, Fukushima and Shiga prefectures. In minka where the main entry *oodoguchi 大戸口, was found on the long side of the building *hirairi 平入, the ebisubashira often was situated towards the front, close to the entry, while the daikokubashira was set further back in the middle or towards the rear of the interior. In certain farmhouses in Hiroshima prefecture, the ebisubashira is located away from the doma in the partition dividing the kitchen *katte 勝手, from the sleeping room *nando 納戸. Alternative regional names for the ebisubashira include ebisudaikoku 恵比須大黒, shimodaikoku 下大黒　and *niwa daikokubashira 庭大黒柱. 2　In farmhouses in the Kumano 熊野 region of Wakayama prefecture, the term daikokubashira was not used. Instead ebisubashira was employed to refer to the principal post situated at the interface between floored and unfloored zones toward the rear of the house away from the long-side entry.

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