Thanks to Akira Kurosawa’s 1950 classic film “Rashōmon” (羅生門), which itself was based in part on a short story of the same name by Ryūnosuke Akutagawa†, the name by which most foreigners know the gate differs from the modern name of the gate, Rajōmon, which uses the original kanji (羅城門, where 羅城 rajō refers to the city walls and 門 mon means “gate”). Ra (羅) means a thin, light fabric or netting and 城 (jō, shiro, or sei) means “castle”. Rajōmon was the larger of the two main city gates built in 789 during the Heian Period (794–1185). It measured 32 meters wide by 7.9 meters high and had a 23-meter high stone wall and topped by a ridge-pole. By the 12th century the gate had fallen into disrepair. Today, nothing remains of the fabled gate, except for a stone marker and a bus stop.

† The plot of the movie and characters are actually based upon Ryunosuke Akutagawa’s short story "In a Grove", with the title and framing story being based on his “Rashōmon”.