The five-story pagodas in Japan date back 1400 years or more. Despite the occurrence of many earthquakes during this period, there is no record of these pagodas being destroyed by earthquakes. Therefore, it is believed that these pagodas are earthquake resistant. However, the reason underlying this resistance has not been clarified yet. Of the various theories, that have been put forth, the most plausible explanation is that one offered by the snake-dance theory. According to this theory, the rocking movements of these pagodas during earthquakes, which resemble a snake dance, protects them from destruction. The pagodas are subjected to few horizontal vibrations during earthquakes. However, a structural model that can recreate these rocking vibrations has yet been created. While we attempted to create such a structural model on a laboratory scale, the aim of our study is that one of describing the structural process during the earthquake shaking, and explaining the results we obtain by writing reports
