Abstract
This also forms a part of the treatises on houses in Tottori and Okayama prefectures. We treat in this paper houses in the western part of the mountainious Mimasaka, where plans and constructions of houses nesemble to those of Tottori prefecture. We visited in this vicinity Kojiro in Katsuyamacho, Tomimura and Kamisaibaracho, and researched 13 houses. Having selected 2 or 3 typical houses in each of these villages which belong to the 17th and 18th centuries, and having restored them to their original forms, we tried to clarify the differences to those of Tottori and among those of these 3 villages. As to the plan, the arrangements of rooms are the same, having also one large hall along the earth floor and 2 rooms, but in Kojiro comes veranda in front of the hall and drawing room, and has deep eaves before the veranda. But in Tomimura, the partition between drawing room and bed room stretches into the hall some 6 or 7 feet malsing a screen wall. The comer behind this wall is called Ryorinoma, that means cooking room, sugesting the original shape to divide the hall into halves. We see in other parts of Okayama prefecture houses that have 4 rooms even in the end of the 17th century. Of course in Osaka and Nara frefecture even in the beginning of the 17th century, every house always has 4 rooms. But in the end of the 18th century, we see these plan everywhere even in Tottori and Okayama prefectures. Refering to the construction, in Tomimura taking advantage of the pillar at the end of the screen wall they lay beams in the different way.
