In Japanese architecture mokoshi (裳階・裳層, also pronounced shōkai), literally "skirt storey" or "cuff storey", is a decorative pent roof surrounding a building below the true roof.[1] Since it does not correspond to any internal division, the mokoshi gives the impression of there being more floors than there really are.[1] It is usually a ken deep and is most commonly seen in Buddhist temples and pagodas (see for example the article tahōtō).[1][2] The mokoshi normally covers a hisashi, a walled aisle surrounding a building on one or more sides, but can be attached directly to the core of the structure (the moya), in which case there is no hisashi.[1] The roofing material for the mokoshi can be the same or different (see for example's Hōryū-ji's kon-dō) as in the main roof.