Shikaku Ishidoro, Japanese Stone Lantern

Stone lanterns, Ishidōrō (石灯籠) in Japanese, are undoubtedly the most characteristic element of the traditional Japanese garden. The phenomenon originated more than a thousand years ago in China, from where it also became part of traditional Japanese culture via Korea. Every Japanese sanctuary, such as a Buddhist temple or Shinto shrine, uses stone lanterns as a sacred light source. During the 16th century, stone lanterns became very popular among Japanese tea masters and were used in tea gardens to illuminate the path to the tea house. Since then, one or more stone lanterns can almost always be found in nearly every traditional Japanese garden.

A Japanese stone lantern consists of several separate parts that must be carefully stacked on top of each other. The perfect balance thus created makes the lantern a very sturdy and durable whole. The different parts from top to bottom are:

• Hōju/Hōshu (宝珠) – The jewel on top of the lantern
• Ikebana (請花) – The support of the jewel
• Kasa (笠) – The hat that protects the lantern house from the weather
• Hibukuro (火袋) – The fire box
• Chūdai (中台) – The platform for the light chamber
• Sao (竿) – The pillar
• Kiso (基礎) – The foundation
• Kidan (基壇) – The base platform

The Shikaku Ishidōrō (四角石灯籠) is known for its characteristic square shapes. This also formed the inspiration for the name Shikaku, as this is Japanese for square.

This specific lantern has very beautiful engraved text on the front of both the pillar and the foundation stone. The text on the pillar is: Aki Tsukiyama (秋築山), which refers to the colors of autumn on a hill in the garden. The text on the foundation stone is from right to left: Chōnai Anzen (町内安全). This translates directly as: peace and safety in the neighborhood.