Kasamori-ji

• Kannon-dō (観音堂), Sengoku period. The Main Hall of the temple stands on top of a large rock. It is the only surviving example of a hall built in the shihōkakezukuri (四方懸造) style; the structure is raised on 61 large stilts on all four sides. The building was first erected in 1028 at the request of Emperor Go-Ichijō as part of a general revival of the temple. A document uncovered during a modern repair of the temple indicates that the structure dates from between 1573 and 1596. The building consists of five rooms in the front and four rooms on the sides, with the center divided into front and back, with the front half serving as the outer building and the back half serving as the inner sanctum. The outer hall is made of plain wood, the inner hall is painted, and the hall is surrounded by a balustraded rim.^[7]
• Cast bronze arabesque-patterned lantern (鋳銅唐草文釣燈籠), Muromachi period, set of two. These hanging lanterns are 34.5-cm and 31.8-cm, respectively, and were made by pouring bronze into a single mold.

The hat is shaped like a flower petal, and the top has a shallowly cast arabesque pattern, gently curving upwards. There are three peach-shaped boar-shaped wind holes on the top.^[8]

• Kasamori-dera Natural Forest (笠森寺自然林). The forest around Kasamori-ji is a remnant of a Japanese temperate rainforest that has been protected as a sacred area since the founding of the temple. The tall tree layer is mainly composed of Castanopsis sieboldii, and many ferns can also be seen, and because the natural environment is preserved, animals such as Japanese weasels, Japanese badgers, and Japanese squirrels, birds such as Oriental scops owls, Great spotted woodpecker, and Eurasian sparrowhawk, and can be seen. It has been designated as a National Natural Monument.^[9]

• Waniguchi (鋳銅鰐口). Muromachi period (1427). This large cast bronze gong that is hung under the front eaves of the Kannon-do, and was used by pilgrims to announce their prayers. It has a diameter of 46.9 cm, a thickness of 10.1 cm, and an inscription with the year 1427, and name of the donor.^[10]
• Bianqing (鋳銅孔雀文磬). Muromachi period (1426). This cast bronze chime is used in Buddhist ceremonies. It is made of cast bronze with a 24.4 cm length, ad height of 16.6 cm. The decoration of peacocks facing each other, centered on an eight-leaf, multi-petaled lotus pattern is the same on both the front and back. It is inscribed with the name of the temple, the date of 1426, and the name of the donor.^[11]

Chiba-ken kotogakko Kyoiku Kenkyukai. Chiba-Ken no rekishi sampo. Yamakawa Shuppan. pp. 237–238. ISBN 978-4-634-24612-6.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Kasamori-ji.

• Kasamori-ji (in Japanese)
• Bando Pilgrimage Site (in Japanese)