Romon (Two-storied Gate)
Architecture楼門 ・ Reading: ろうもん
Definition
A two-storied gate with a railed balcony on the upper level. Unlike a nijumon, only the lower level opens as a passage.
What it is
A rōmon is a tall, two-storied gate that stands at the approach to many Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples. The word literally means "tower gate", and the defining feature is the upper storey, which carries a railed balcony running around it. That balcony, with its wooden railing called a kōran, is the easiest way to recognise one from the ground.
What to look for
Stand back and compare the two levels. On a rōmon only the lower level is open, so you pass beneath it as you would through any gateway. The upper storey sits above as a symbolic crown and is usually closed off, not meant to be entered. Look up and you will normally see the balcony and railing wrapping the second level. Because the lower storey has no roof of its own, a rōmon shows only a single set of eaves, high up at the top.
How it differs from a nijūmon
A rōmon and a nijūmon) can look almost identical from a distance, since both rise to two storeys. The difference is structural. A nijūmon has a full roof over its lower storey as well as its upper one, giving it two clear sets of eaves. A rōmon has only the single upper roof, with the balcony marking the boundary between the levels. In practice, count the roofs: two sets of eaves point to a nijūmon, one to a rōmon.
Common questions
- What is the difference between a rōmon and a nijūmon?
- Both a rōmon and a nijūmon are two-storied gates, but a nijūmon has a full roof over its lower storey as well as its upper one, so it shows two sets of eaves. A rōmon has only the single upper roof, with a railed balcony marking the boundary between the two levels. The quickest way to tell them apart is to count the roofs.
- Can you go up to the second storey of a rōmon?
- No, on a rōmon the upper storey is usually closed and not open to visitors. Only the lower level of a rōmon functions as a passage, so you walk beneath the gate rather than climbing into it.
- Does a rōmon mean I am at a shrine or a temple?
- A rōmon can stand at either a Shinto shrine or a Buddhist temple, so on its own it does not tell you which. To be sure, look for a torii, which almost always means a shrine, or Buddhist guardian statues such as Niō figures, which point to a temple.