【Traditional of streets and houses11】伝統的な町並み11

　”うだつが上がらない”ということわざをご存じでしょうか？

富裕の家がなければ、うだつを上げることができないということです。

ここから転じて、広辞苑では、「出世できない人、前に進めない人、身分がぱっ

としない人」と書かれています。

　うだつは、”卯建”と書き、江戸時代に建物の両側に卯の字に張り出した小屋根

付きの袖壁をいいます。建物の境にあり、装飾と防火を兼ね備えています。

　うだつの町並みと知られる、徳島県美馬市にある商家町を紹介します。

この町は、”藍”の集散地として栄え、吉野川中流に位置します。

下記の動画では、うだつの他に、虫籠窓（むしこまど）、格子造り（こうしづく

り）を見ることができます。

上の絵は、美馬市の公式キャラクターの”うだつまる”です。

Do you know a proverb “Udatsu no agaranai”?

It comes from an old custom that if we do not have a house of a symbol of

wealth we cannot build up “Udatsu” on our house.

Shifted it from that meaning, according to the Kojien dictionary, it is

used for a person who cannot succeed in life, a man who never gets ahead

or a person of low-rank status.

“Udatsu” is written as ”卯建” in Japanese, and this is a sidewall in the

shape of a character “卯” with a chimney cover which stress on both sides

of a house in the Edo era. It is located in a boundary of houses and is

helpful for decoration and fire prevention.

I introduce a merchants ‘ family town in in Mima city, Tokushima, which

is known as a historic site of “Udatsu”.

This town prospered in business as a distribution centre of “indigo plant”

and is located in the middle of the Yoshino River.

You can see a kind of special window called “Mushiko window” and

latticework other than “Udatsu” in following a video.

The picture of the top is “Udatsu-Maru” of the official character in Mima

city.