Japanese rokushigake temple architecture for your living room: The no-nail Masugumi table

If you’re looking for your new artisanal centerpiece, this is it.

Whether it’s kabuki-inspired sneakers or augmented reality ceramics, Japanese designers continue to stun with their ability to revive and reuse traditional artforms and techniques. The latest example comes from Seibu Wood, which has taken traditional Japanese temple architecture and applied it this beautiful piece of furniture called Masugumi.

Made from Shikoku Prefecture-sourced hinoki (Japanese cypress) wood, a Masugumi table is constructed in a traditional rokushigake, or “six branch” style that utilizes a balance of wooden supports to support the heavy weight of roof tiles without using nails. It’s a bit like Japanese wood joinery, in which an intricate system of wooden pegs and holes join furniture joints together without the use of nails.

▼ Rokushigake is most commonly seen in Japanese temples and shrines, such as in this five-story pagoda.

The designers created Masugumi to carry on traditional woodworking techniques like this in a contemporary way. Take a look at the closeup of the table’s wooden supports — there’s not a nail in sight.

The Masugumi table is 185 centimeters (72.8 inches) long and 75 centimeters wide, with a height of 72 centimeters. It’s also 70 kilograms (154.3 pounds), so it’s a heavy-duty piece of furniture. As for the cost? It’s currently priced at 1 million yen (US$7,361.33).

Besides Masugumi, the Seibu Wood artisanal lineup includes other unique pieces modeled after famous architectural structures throughout Japan. For instance, this Kiyomizu table is based on Kyoto’s famous Kiyomizudera Temple.

The Miyajima looks like the floating torii gate on Hiroshima’s Miyajima Island.

The Awa design is a bit more compact.

And finally, there’s the bridge-like Amano Hashi, or Amano Bridge.

They do ship overseas, and can be ordered through the Seibu Wood website if you’re interested in adding some classical Japanese architectural style to your home.

Related Seibu Wood
Sources: Japaaan, @Press, Seibu Wood
Images: Japaaan Magazine
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