An angle rafter tile (sumiki-futa kawara) is a block that covers the beams protruding from the four corners of hip and gabled roofs in architecture. It is not a solid block of baked clay; rather, the underside is recessed. Turned upside-down, its shape resembles a box. This type of rafter tile not only functions as adornment at the edges of the eaves, but it also protects the tops of the wooden pillars at the corners of the roof, which are inserted into the recessions on the undersides of the blocks. A flower-shaped cloud motif runs continuously around the edges of the block. A tile that seems to be of the same variety is found in the roof of the Southern Gate at Yakushi-ji Temple.
Object label
Cover-tile of hip rafter (Excavated presumably from Yakushi-ji temple, Nara)
Baked clay
H 5.5, 28.0x35.7
Nara period 8th century
- A023982
- A023979
- 1993/01/13
- A023980
- 1993/01/13
- A023981
- 1993/01/13
- A023982
- 1993/01/13
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| Accession Number | 637-0 |
|---|---|
| Category | Archaeological Works |
| Provenance | Excavated presumably from Yakushi-ji temple, Nara |
| Bibliography | Illustrated catalogue of the collection of Nara National Museum. Nara National Museum, 1993, 156p. |

