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Buildings

Tenjin shrine

A traditional Japanese shrine with pointed ears at its four corners. Blintz, make a double boat, then open the middle.

  • DifficultyIntermediate
  • PaperSquare, 15 × 15 cm
  • Steps12
  • About12 min

Why this level: You pull hidden corners out and later open the middle and flatten it, so you need to watch the layers.

You need: 1 sheet of origami paper

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Story

The Tenjin shrine has been folded in Japan for a long time. The oldest record we know of is a Japanese kindergarten book from 1884, where the name “Tenjin Shrine” is written beside the picture of the folded model. A Chinese book from 1917 calls it a “Plaque”, and nobody is sure what it was meant to show — one guess is a temple roof. This shape is also the starting point for folding the treasure ship (takarabune).

Did you know? In a picture from an 1894 Japanese magazine, the top flaps carry six dots: the plum-blossom crest of Tenjin.

Learn more (external sources)

Steps at a glance

  1. 1. Crease both diagonals

    White side up, turned like a diamond. Fold the bottom corner up to the top corner and unfold, then fold the left corner to the right corner and unfold.

  2. 2. Fold the corners to the centre (blintz)

    Fold each of the four corners to the centre point. You get a smaller square showing the coloured side.

  3. 3. Fold the top and bottom to the centre

    Fold the top edge and the bottom edge to the horizontal centre line. You get a long rectangle.

  4. 4. Fold the sides to the centre

    Fold the left edge and the right edge to the vertical centre line. You get a small square.

  5. 5. Crease the four corners

    On each flap, fold the corner at the middle out on the slant so its top (or bottom) edge lies on the outer edge. Crease firmly and unfold. Do all four.

  6. 6. Unfold the sides

    Unfold the two side flaps so you have the long rectangle again. The creases stay.

  7. 7. Pull out the left corners

    Fold the left end back to the centre along its crease. At the same time pull the two hidden corners out, one up and one down, and flatten.

  8. 8. Pull out the right corners

    Do the same at the right end. You get a long hexagon pointed at the top and bottom.

  9. 9. Turn over

    Turn the whole model over.

  10. 10. Fold the sides to the centre

    Fold the left and right edges to the vertical centre line. The points at the top and bottom fold too, and the model gets narrow.

  11. 11. Turn over

    Turn over again. A slit runs down the middle.

  12. 12. Open the middle and flatten

    Hold both edges of the slit and pull them apart to the left and right. The two front panels swing outward, pointed ears appear at the four corners, and the inside folds up to leave a square window in the middle. Press flat: your Tenjin shrine is done!

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