Byobu
A byobu, literally a wind wall, is a Japanese folding screen made of several joined panels that carry painting or calligraphy. It was made to divide a room, keep out a draught and enclose a private space, and over twelve centuries it became one of the largest surfaces a Japanese painter could work on.
Definition
A byobu is defined by its construction as much as its picture. Each panel is a light wooden lattice covered in layers of paper stretched across it like the skin of a drum. The painting is mounted on that paper ground, a lacquered wooden frame, typically black or dark red, protects the outer edge, and decorated metal fittings guard the corners and the lacquer. The panels are joined by paper hinges, so the screen folds flat and stands in a zigzag without any stand.
Screens are counted by their panels. Two-panel and six-panel screens are the familiar formats, and six-panel screens are often made as a pair, a left and a right screen read together as one composition.
Origin
The folding screen began in Han dynasty China and is thought to have reached Japan in the seventh or eighth century, in the Nara period. The oldest surviving Japanese example, an eighth-century screen of standing beauties decorated with bird feathers, is kept in the Shosoin treasure repository. Nara-period screens were six-panelled, covered in silk and tied together with leather or silk cords; coin-shaped metal hinges came next.
In the Muromachi period, from 1392 to 1568, screens spread into houses, training halls and shops. Overlapping paper hinges replaced metal ones, making screens lighter, easier to fold and stronger at the joints, and that change forced the panel lattice to become as light as possible. In the Azuchi-Momoyama and early Edo periods, the patronage of merchants and the display of samurai houses brought gold-leaf grounds and richly coloured painting, a style led by the Kano school. In the modern day, many screens are machine-made, while families keeping the craft still make them by hand.
Key facts
| Meaning | Wind wall |
|---|---|
| Arrival in Japan | Seventh or eighth century, from China |
| Oldest surviving Japanese screen | Eighth century, held in the Shosoin |
| Construction | Softwood lattice, layers of paper, paper hinges, lacquered frame, metal fittings |
| Common formats | Two-panel; six-panel, often in pairs |
| Golden age of gold grounds | Azuchi-Momoyama and early Edo periods |
How to identify it
- Count and pair. Count the panels and ask whether the screen is one of a pair. In our reading, a single screen of a six-panel pair is a different object from the pair, and the composition should show whether the other half is missing.
- Read the ground. Gold leaf shows the faint grid of its squares; painted gold is smooth. A ground on silk and a ground on paper also age differently.
- Check the hinges. Paper hinges are the weak point. In our handling, splits along the fold and repairs on the reverse are common and should be described.
- Look at the frame and fittings. A replaced frame is normal on an old screen; the painting is what is read first.
- Signatures and seals. Many screens are unsigned, and many signed ones are attributed rather than proven. The house describes a signature as it reads, not as a certainty.
Where it appears in the collection
The house keeps screens on the scrolls and byobu shelf. Recent pieces include a pair of six-panel screens of scenes from the Tale of Genji on a gold ground and a pair with pine, bamboo, plum and cranes. For a longer read, see our guide to byobu folding screens and our page on screen formats.
Related entries
- Kakejiku: the hanging scroll, the screen's companion in the room.
- Maki-e: the lacquer that can decorate a screen's frame.
- Ukiyo-e: the floating-world pictures that share many screen subjects.
Sources
- Byobu, encyclopaedia entry, sections on history and construction. wikipedia.org
Last reviewed 15 November 2026. The Japonista Curation and Concierge Team, Tokyo, Japan.