Niigata Shirone Butsudan

Harmony of the whole

For a Shirone altar, durability and overall harmony matter most: the balance of the shumidan dais and the kuden inner shrine, the carving and maki-e designs, the lacquer, the gold leaf and the fittings must come together into solemn elegance. It is made in Niigata city in Niigata, whose hot, humid climate suits the drying of lacquer.

A rod for a blueprint

• The body and kuden are built of hinoki, himekomatsu pine and zelkova. A single long rod called kanebakari serves as the altar's blueprint, and dozens of kinds of planes are used.
• Carvings and fittings are made to fit.
• Parts are lacquered, decorated with maki-e and gold leaf.
• Fittings are mounted and the altar is assembled.

Temple builders turn to altars

Echigo, today's Niigata, is where the founders Shinran and Nichiren were exiled, and Buddhism has long been strong. In the mid-Edo period, temple builders brought techniques from Kyoto and made Kyoto-style altars, then plain-wood altars with their own carving. By the late 18th century Shirone had its own techniques, with the work divided among specialists.