Tokonoma

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A Japanese Tokonoma with a hanging scroll and Ikebana

Drawing of a tokonoma from Japanese homes and their surroundings by Edward S. Morse.

A tokonoma (Japanese: 床の間) is a small raised alcove in a washitsu, a Japanese style room with a tatami floor, where decorative scrolls are hung. Ikebana (arranged flowers) and/or bonsai are also often displayed there. The tokonoma and its contents are essential elements of traditional Japanese interior decoration. Tokonoma first appeared in the late Muromachi period (14th-16th century).

When seating guests in a Japanese-style room, the correct etiquette is to seat the most important guest with their back facing the tokonoma. This is because of modesty; the host should not be seen to show off the contents of the tokonoma to the guest, and thus it is necessary not to point the guest towards the tokonoma.

Stepping up inside it is strictly forbidden.