Can you get onto a Kyoto townhouse roof from inside the building?

February 8, 2011 9:05 PM

How do you get onto the roof of a Machiya?

I'm drawing a graphic novel set in 1860s Kyoto, and am midway through a scene that takes place inside a machiya (or townhouse.) In my script, one of the characters runs upstairs and eventually emerges onto the roof of the building. However, I'm not entirely sure if period machiya had interior roof access, or second-floor windows large enough for a person to fit through such that they could climb up onto the roof that way.

The resident of this particular machiya is an Englishman who's made some changes to its construction, so I can probably cheat this if I have to. But I'd really rather not.

Links or personal anecdata would be great. Photos or diagrams would be even better.

posted by Narrative Priorities to Society & Culture (3 answers total)

Here is a paper model of a machiya house. Although the front windows are not big enough to climb through, the back windows are certainly large enough. I doubt there would be direct roof access, and that one would most likely have to get a ladder from an outbuilding the back to get onto the roof.

However, the paper model of a chaya machiya building actually has direct roof access for clothes drying. Maybe it would be easiest to say he bought an old chaya with roof access.
posted by that girl at 10:21 PM on February 8, 2011

The smaller house model also appears to have a small window in the roof; maybe he could use that for roof access with a ladder.
posted by that girl at 10:24 PM on February 8, 2011

you climb up onto the monohoshi-dai and then onto the roof from there bro.　http://b9spot.nobody.jp/osaka/kurasi/12_2.jpg
posted by Infernarl at 11:14 PM on February 8, 2011