Shureimon

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Shureimon (守礼門) (or Shurei no mon) is a gate in the Shuri neighborhood of Naha, the capital of Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. It is the second of Shuri Castle's main gates. It was built in the 16th century.

The gate reflects strong Chinese influence, alongside indigenous religious traditions. The four Chinese characters framed on the gate - Shu, rei, no, and kuni, which mean 'Land of Propriety' - were added to the gate long after it was built. The structure of the gate is similar to that of Chinese three-bay turret gates, and is covered with a red hip-and-gable tiled roof.

The main columns are 7.94 meters apart. The top layer of the gate is 7.05 meters high, and the lower layer 5.11 meters. The 4 pillars stand on foundation stones, and they are supported on front and back by slanting accessory pillars for better stability.

The gate was destroyed during the Second World War and reconstructed through local campaigns and support in the 1950's-60's. It was thus the first part of the Shuri Castle that was reconstructed, although decades would follow until the rest of the castle was restored as well.

A picture of the gate appears on the Japanese 2,000 yen note, released in 2000 in commemoration of the 26th G8 summit in Okinawa.

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