REKIHAKU

No.153 A Witness to History

Tile Collection – History Hidden in Tiles

Although there are fewer tile-roofed buildings, tiles are still commonplace things you see in everyday life. For example, when you walk in Sakura Joshi Park, you can find smoked tiles from the Edo era scattered all over the ground. Nobody tries to pick them up; they are just trampled down by people into the soil. They are just trash that readily appears if some rogue starts digging.

However, tiles were not originally trash you could find anywhere. Tiles appeared in Japan for the first time in Asukadera whose construction started in 588 （the first year of Sushun） (see Photo (1). An enormous number of tiles were placed on the roof, and the end of the roof was decorated with eaves tiles with a lotus flower pattern symbolizing the essence of Buddhism. The somber building structure, which nobody had ever seen before, was a symbol of authority that overwhelmed people. After more than 100 years had passed, tiles were also used in Fujiwara Palace and even in government offices. Tiles started becoming common in ordinary houses in the Edo era as a fire prevention measure. In other words, tiles were a special product used only in special buildings such as temples and government offices over a 1,000-year period.

Photo (1): Eaves channel tile from Asukadera in Asukamura, Nara Prefecture (Asuka era)	Photo (2)-1: Plain eaves tile from Kokuzoji in Usa City, Oita Prefecture (Hakuho era)
Photo (2)-2: Plain convex tile processed into an inkstone	Photo (3): Eaves channel tile from To-ji Temple in Kyoto City (Heian era) Patterned surface processed into an inkstone

For this reason, forgotten ancient government offices and temples sometimes come to light because tiles are discovered. From the Edo era, enthusiasts frequently picked up tiles, exchanged rubbed copies of them, and made stylish inkstones from them (see Photo (2) and (3)). Studies were steadily conducted in such an environment, and rubbed copies with their places of collection written increased their value as historic documents. It is only recently that ancient tiles have been excavated by research teams in large quantities and detailed analyses have been carried out based on such excavations. Until then, studies were conducted based on tiles collected by individuals. Aficionados show less interest in channel tiles or plain tiles, which exist in large quantities. They prefer to collect patterned eaves channel tiles or plain eaves tiles. Therefore, precious tiles not yet found by excavation researches are often found in such collections of enthusiasts.

The National Museum of Japanese History has three tile collections: the Uno Nobushiro collection, the Mizuki collection, and the "Collection of Tiles Excavated in Japan." Here, I would like to introduce a part of the "Collection of Tiles Excavated in Japan," which was compiled in " Illustrated Catalogue of the National Museum of Japanese History (4)" in 2006, but remains less familiar.

Photo (4): Eaves channel tile from Kaieji in Sennan City, Osaka Prefecture (Hakuho era)	Script written with a spatula on a convex channel tile
Photo (5): Eaves channel tile from Kuzugami Haiji in Hirakata City, Osaka Prefecture (Hakuho era)	Photo (6): Eaves channel tile from Kii Ueno Haiji in Wakayama City (Hakuho era) ）

This collection consists of 1,181 pieces from 842 exhibits. They are mostly tiles excavated in various regions of Japan, although there are some tiles excavated in the Korean Peninsula and China. The collection consists of artifacts from each period from ancient period through Early Modern and Modern periods, allowing for an overview of tiles of each region in each period. The collection is characterized by places of collection written on many of the pieces. In particular, the old Rakuzan library collection, which is the result of the longtime collecting efforts of the late Toshio Suzuki known as the archeologist of Mie Prefecture, is considered to be the basic material for the study of ancient temples in Mie Prefecture.

Let's take a closer look at a few pieces.

Photo (4) shows an eaves channel tile with an eight-petal lotus flower pattern excavated from the Kaieji site in Sennan City, Osaka Prefecture. The Kaieji site is designated as a national historical site, and some tiles excavated from this site have become important cultural properties.This piece at the National Museum of Japanese History was collected before those tiles and is not treated in the same way. The lines are carved on the channel tile before baking, and they often indicate the name of the artisan, supplier group, or supply destination. This script is the only one found so far, and its meaning remains unknown.

Photo (7): Eaves channel tile from Chishakuji in Yokkaichi City, Mie Prefecture (Hakuho era)	Photo (8): Eaves channel tile from Hankoji in Tsu City, Mie Prefecture (Hakuho era)
Photo (9): Eaves channel tile from Kioroshi Haiji in Inzai City, Chiba Prefecture (Hakuho era)	Photo (10): Eaves channel tile from Aoki Haiji in Sakurai City, Nara Prefecture (Nara era)
Photo (11): Eaves channel tile from Nagaokakyu in Muko City, Kyoto Prefecture (Nara era)	Photo (12): Eaves channel tile from Ise Kokubunji, Suzuka City, Mie Prefecture (Nara era)

The eaves channel tile with a concentric circle pattern excavated from the Nagaokakyu site in Muko City, Kyoto Prefecture shown in Photo (11) is a tile originally used in Naniwanomiya established as the second capital while the capital was Heijokyo in the Nara era. The Emperor Kanmu issued an imperial mandate to transfer the capital to Nagaoka in 784 (Enryaku 3), rapidly built the center of Nagaokakyu, and succeeding in constructing Daigokuden in six months. This was possible because the building materials such as tiles and pillars were taken from the demolished Naniwanomiya. And tiles used in Fujiwarakyo and Heijokyo, and those newly made for the capital transfer to Nagaoka, were also excavated from the Nagaokakyu site. Analyzing these tiles makes it possible to understand from which block construction was started.

Photo (13): Plain eaves tile from Ise Kokubunji in Suzuka City, Mie Prefecture (Nara era)	Photo (14): Plain eaves tile from Tengeiji Haiji in Matsusaka City, Mie Prefecture (Nara era)
Photo (15): Eaves channel tile from Ohgase Haiji in Taki Town, Mie Prefecture (Nara era)	Photo (16): Plain eaves tile from Totomi Kokubunji in Iwata City, Shizuoka Prefecture (Nara era)

Photo (12) shows a bead-patterned eaves channel tile with an eight-petal lotus flower pattern excavated from the Ise Kokubunji site in Suzuka City, Mie Prefecture. Among several kinds of eaves channel tiles excavated from the Ise Kokubunji site, this is the most common kind and considered to be a tile used for building Kokubunji. Other tiles are considered to be those replaced at the time of repair. In eaves tiles, patterns are carved on a wooden molding, which is stamped to make consecutive patterned surfaces. The molding may be damaged after repeated stamping, and that is the cause of the flaw running through the center of this tile. This molding damage is an important key in judging the detailed job sequence in the tile manufacturing and identifying tiles made from the same molding as that excavated from another temple.

Thus, many historic details are hidden in every single tile.

Photo (17): Eaves channel tile from Shomokudai Haiji in Ishioka City, Ibaraki Prefecture (Nara era)	Photo (18): Eaves channel tile from Shimokimiyama Haiji in Inashiki City, Ibaraki Prefecture (Nara era)
Photo (19): Gold leaf eaves channel tile from Fushimijo in Kyoto City (Azuchimomoyama era）	Photo (20): Gold leaf eaves channel tile from Azuchijo in Azuchi Town, Shiga Prefecture (Azuchimomoyama era)

Jiro Muraki (Archaeology, Research Department）