House Pole

Temporary ridge-pole from a Japanese house. Unpainted wood with strips of cloth attached. The pole is encircled with seven, five, and three black bands (these numbers are regarded as a lucky numerical sequence) and inscribed in Japanese. The inscription notes the date, maker, and patron. This type of pole is erected when the framework of a house is completed and a ceremony is held called muneage (棟上げ), or the "ridge pole putting up ceremony". The pole is allowed to remain about two days after the ceremony. The full inscription states:

Construction completed on the first day of the seventh month of the 23rd year of the Meiji reign (1890).

Obeying the orders of Mr. John T. Morris of Philadelphia, America,

Craftsman Takahashi Daisuke of Tokyo, Japan, carried this out.