Belfries first appeared in Buddhist temples in Japan during the Nara period, between 710 and 794 CE.
Japanese temple belfries, or shōrō , can be separated into two broad categories, hakamagoshi and fukihanachi.
The older examples are usually two-storey hakamagoshi style, in which the belfry has walls that resemble hakama, Japanese traditional pleated trousers.
From the 13th century onward, this style was replaced with fukihanachi single storey, wall-less constructions that literally allow the breeze blow through them.
Many beautiful examples of shōrō can be seen in the precincts of Japan’s famous and not-so-famous temples alike.
* All the temple belfries pictured here can found in Nara prefecture.