Registered Tangible Cultural Properties of Japan

The residential core of the former Ito estate, completed in 1887 and now the heart of the Northern Culture Museum, with a 30-metre Aizu cedar beam overhead.

At the quiet western rear of the estate, this sukiya-influenced parlor of 1889 uses fine timber and soft sand-plaster walls, a gentler note than the main house.

Southeast of the Great Hall, this L-shaped tea house of 1950 joins a thatched grass-hut wing and a tiled shoin wing, by Tanaka Taiami facing the garden.

At the estate's northern edge, this 1883 workshop, where carpenters built and repaired the buildings, is a rare surviving construction facility with tall posts.

On the north of the grounds, this 1927 two-story house with a lookout tower was a branch family's home, its tall storeys marking a regional Showa residence.

Along the south wall at the estate front, this small early-Showa kura kept the Ito family's valuables, built solid with white plaster over a namako base.

The Main Hall of Honkō-ji Temple in Sawane Kagomachi, Sado City, Niigata Prefecture, is a late Edo-period Jōdo Shinshū Buddhist hall registered as a National Tangible Cultural Property in 2008. Preserving a standard True Pure Land temple layout with refined bracket complexes and carved transoms, it stands as a testament to the craftsmanship that flourished on Sado Island during the gold mining era.

Discover the Omote Genkan of Honjō-ji in Sanjō, Niigata — a registered tangible cultural property. Built around 1895, this ceremonial entrance with its triple-pendant karahafu gable links the temple's main halls and reflects Meiji-era craftsmanship in a centuries-old Hokke-shū sanctuary.

The Kyakuden (Guest Hall) of Honjoji Temple, the head temple of the Hokke-shū Jinmon-ryū sect in Sanjo City, Niigata, is a grand single-story wooden structure built in 1895. Registered as a National Tangible Cultural Property in 2021, it is celebrated for its expansive open interior and elegant hip-and-gable roof, exemplifying the finest Meiji-era temple architecture.

The Kuri (Kitchen Hall) of Honjo-ji Temple in Sanjo City, Niigata Prefecture, is a National Registered Tangible Cultural Property rebuilt in 1895. This imposing 567-square-meter wooden structure serves as the domestic and administrative heart of the head temple of the Hokke-shu Jinmon-ryu Buddhist sect. Its central hearth room features the remarkable "married couple pillars," salvaged and re-hewn from the former main hall destroyed by fire. The temple is also renowned for its connection to master sculptor Ishikawa Uncho and its spectacular Setsubun Oni Odori demon dance.

The Daishoin at Honjo-ji Temple in Sanjo City, Niigata Prefecture, is a National Registered Tangible Cultural Property built around 1899. This elegant reception hall features refined tatami rooms with snow-country design adaptations, connected to the Guest Hall by a distinctive drum bridge. The temple is also renowned for its association with sculptor Ishikawa Uncho and its spectacular Setsubun demon dance.

The Main Hall of Honjo-ji Temple in Sanjo City, Niigata Prefecture, is the architectural centerpiece of the head temple of the Hokke-shū Jinmon-ryū sect, with a history spanning over 700 years. Built in 1903, this magnificent 881-square-meter wooden hall features exquisite carvings by master craftsmen from Toyama and was registered as a National Tangible Cultural Property in 2021. Visitors can also enjoy works by sculptor Ishikawa Uncho and the famous Oni Odori demon dance festival.

The Dokkodo at Rengebuji on Sado Island is a small stone shrine beside a valley spring. A block carries a 1622 date, and carved demon faces finish its three-bay ridge.

The Niomon at Rengebuji on Sado Island is an east-facing eight-legged gate of 1822, with round columns and twelve stone plinths inscribed with donors' names.

The Hakkakudo at Rengebuji on Sado Island is a mid-Edo octagonal hall roofed in copper, its carved brackets and eaves composed to read as a dragon amid clouds.

The Hassodo at Rengebuji on Sado Island honors the eight Shingon patriarchs, with rare five-step brackets and a thatch-form copper roof over a painted interior frame.

The Mitsugondo at Rengebuji on Sado Island, the sixth station of the island's Shikoku pilgrimage, is a small hall said to date to 1844 with carved interior supports.

The Mumyobashi at Rengebuji on Sado Island is an arched stone bridge to the inner sanctuary, its thirty-six slabs each carved with a Sanskrit syllable beneath.

Discover the Inari Shrine Mikoshigura in Niigata's Kita Ward, a Registered Tangible Cultural Property from the late Edo period featuring a distinctive shrine-like gable design and painted coffered ceiling with floral and bird motifs.

The Former Main Building of the Convent of the Daughters of Jesus in Hayama, Kanagawa Prefecture, is an elegant Western-style villa built in 1914 as a seaside retreat for Prince Higashifushimi Yorihito. Designed by imperial architect Kigo Kozaburo, the building features distinctive white German-style weatherboard cladding and a commanding tower. As the sole surviving imperial family villa in Hayama and the only pre-Great Kanto Earthquake imperial residence in the Shonan region, it was registered as a National Registered Tangible Cultural Property in 2017.

The complete kokuhō catalogue — browse by prefecture, period, and category.

Nationwide jūyō bunkazai — architecture, sculpture, painting, crafts, and documents.

UNESCO-inscribed cultural and natural sites across the archipelago.