Mado, window

Chashitsu windows are made with shoji and function as a decorative element and source of light and air. Size, placement, design and number of windows are crucial in chashitsu design. Windows can be on the host side and/or the guests side and each window has its own characteristics and functions. A mistake in design or of a position of a window may end up confusing users. Names of windows vary depending on their position, shape, or the way they open.

Furosaki mado

kake shoji	kadohiki do

Furosaki mado is a host side window in front of the furo (brazier). As the name explains itself, it is a window placed on the wall which faces the host when preparing tea. Furosaki mado is small, around 55 cm high, its shoji screen is 42.5 cm wide and it is placed around 21 cm above the floor.

It is often used in a koma-seki where the tight feeling between the host and the wall can be soften with the light coming through the shoji paper.

The shoji screen may slide like kadohiki do or be hooked like kake shoji. Usually, the sliding type doesn't open completely and the hooked shoji would not be removed because the idea of furosaki mado is to be designed primarily as a decorative element and a source of light.

Shikishi mado

Shikishi mado consists of two windows of which shoji screens resemble two shikishi or square pieces of paper, and are placed one on top of the other. They are often used in daime seki as host side windows. They are placed on the side wall close to the host in the temaeza (host's preparation area). The top window is horizontal and its outside design is generally renji mado. The bottom window is, on the other hand, vertical and its outside design is generally shitaji mado. But they may have two shitaji mado or shitaji mado on the top and renji mado on the bottom depending on the design and necessities.

Tsukiage mado

inside view	section

Tsukiage mado is a skylight window on a ceiling that can be opened by a stick called tsukiage-bo that can be pushed up from the inside. Usually, it is placed either on an inclined ceiling closer to the nijiriguchi (crawling entrance) or on the ceiling above the host side. It is not placed on a horizontal ceiling. There are four different sizes of tsukiage-bo in order to open a window of different heights. The two long tsukiage-bo are square sticks made of cedar, 79 cm and 57.5 cm long, and have a special metal hook shaped like a bird's head on its end. The other two, short ones, are made of bamboo, 30 cm and 14 cm long and 1.8 cm diameter.

Shitaji mado

outside view	inside view

Shitaji mado is a window in which the plaster wall's inner structure is shown. Today the inner structure is custom made and is added on to the window's opening but it is still possible to find some shita-ji mado that reveal the real wall's inner structure in some old chashitsu.

Renji mado

renji mado outside view

Renji mado, or windows with lattice, have been used since early times. Some renji mado can be found in Asuka Period temples. Generally, any lattice window or door is called renji. In chashitsu architecture, however, only if the lattice is made of bamboo it is named renji and windows with lattice made by all other trees are named koushi mado. The space between the bamboo pieces, 10.5 cm to 12 cm, in a chashitsu renji mado are slightly wider than what is used in other architecture.

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