Sumiya entrance and the red walls of the former Kyoto geisha district

One of the distinctive particularities of the buildings inside the hanamachi geisha districts of Kyoto were the red ocher colored walls.

The red pigment used was made of iron oxide brought from Bengara, India, and it is still known in Japan as bengara. Besides the beautiful color, bengara also protects the wood against weather, at it is believed to be effective against moths too...