A study on the stone lanterns by Kahei Nishimura, a master mason from Shiga Prefecture

The Hira Mountains located in the northern part of Otsu City, Shiga Prefecture, Japan used to be a granite producing area and it was widely used for “torii gates” and lanterns of shrines, basement stone of the houses, stone walls, and garden stones. The purpose of this study is to analyze the stone lanterns made by Kahei Nishimura, a well-known master mason in Minamikomatsu village, using 24 units of old documents related to his masonry found in this study. Based on these documents, a field survey to identify the Kahei’s lanterns, and interviews to local stonemason and gardeners, the major types of lantern produced, namely Rengeji, Kasuga lanterns or Okunoin followed by Rikyu and Yukimi from 1912-1948. These lanterns were sold mainly in the east side of Lake Biwa, such as Hikone, Notogawa, and Kosai areas, as well as the east side of the lake and Kyoto, and the distribution changed over time expanding to Konan-cho and Moriyama. By comparing the drawings in the old documents and actual lanterns made by Kahei, many patterns were engraved on the lanterns. This study results help to understand the conditions of the masonry that was flourished in the area, and the values of their work from the Meiji to the early Showa era.