A hanging scroll, called by the generic terms 立軸 ([i]lìzhóu[/i]) in China and 掛軸/掛け軸 ([i]kakejiku[/i]) in Japan, is an illustration or piece of [[calligraphy]] affixed to a [[scroll]] of cloth or paper.

When hanging scrolls first took their modern form during the "Northern Song Dynasty":http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Song_Dynasty%23Northern_Song.2C_960.E2.80.931127&rct=j&q=Northern+Song+Dynasty&usg=AFQjCNFIrrx4svMf0c5D1xR1PQ26uXs3XQ&sa=X&ei=4IjqTrWKL-edmQWm_oWdCg&ved=0CDMQygQwAA of China, they were strongly characterized as portable murals to be used in religious ceremonies, but later came to be appreciated as art objects.

In the "Japanese Way of Tea,":http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_tea_ceremony these scrolls are called 掛物 ([i]kakemono[/i]), and are emphasized as an indispensable piece of equipment for the [[tea ceremony]]. Japanese [i]kakejiku[/i] are typically displayed in a special alcove for art objects called the "[i]tokonoma[/i].":http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tokonoma 
掛軸 掛け軸