The proper, the residential compound of the emperor, was enclosed within another set of walls to the east of . It measured approximately 215 m (710 ft) north to south and 170 m (560 ft) east to west. The main gate was the at the centre of the southern wall of the enclosure, immediately to the north of the gate. In contrast to the solemn official Chinese-style architecture of the and the , the was built in more intimate Japanese architectural style — if still on a grand scale. The Inner Palace represented a variant of the shinden style architecture used in the aristocratic villas and houses of the period. The buildings, with unpainted surfaces and gabled and shingled cypress bark roofs, were raised on elevated wooden platforms and connected to each other with covered and uncovered slightly elevated passages. Between the buildings and passages were gravel yards and small gardens.