Guardians of the Gable
Sentry at the gable peak
The dilukai occupies the highest point of the bai, where roof beams converge and the ridge meets the open sky.
Symmetry as authority
Bilateral balance roots the guardian in the architecture itself — not ornament applied, but presence carved into the beam.
Three colours, one ground
Ochre red, ochre yellow, and soot black sit directly on the carved-wood plank. No primer, no white, no fourth tone.
Carved from the beam
The figure is hewn from the same timber as the ridge pole. She is inseparable from the house she guards.