Important cultural property

Izumo Daijingu in Kameoka, Kyoto Prefecture, is an ancient shrine known as 'Moto-Izumo' (Original Izumo) and ranked as the premier shrine of Tanba Province. Its main hall, believed to have been renovated by Ashikaga Takauji in 1345, is a masterpiece of medieval shrine architecture in the sangensha-nagare-zukuri style with cypress bark roofing, designated as an Important Cultural Property of Japan. Dedicated to Ōkuninushi, the deity of matchmaking, the shrine also features sacred spring water, ancient rock formations, and the revered Mount Mikage.

The Main Hall of Itsuki Shrine in Ayabe, Kyoto Prefecture, is a single-bay nagare-zukuri board-roofed shrine dating to the mid-Muromachi period. Designated a nationally Important Cultural Property in August 2024, it is celebrated for its rare blend of Shinto and Zen Buddhist architectural elements and its legendary ties to Prince Maroko's demon-slaying campaign.

Iwashimizu Hachimangu, one of Japan's three great Hachiman shrines, sits atop Mount Otoko in Yawata, Kyoto Prefecture. Founded in 860 CE, it has served as a guardian of the imperial capital for over a millennium. Its ten-building sanctuary complex, designated a National Treasure in 2016, is the oldest and largest surviving example of Hachiman-zukuri architecture. Highlights include vivid polychrome carvings, Oda Nobunaga's Golden Rain Gutters, and the Iwashimizu Festival—one of Japan's Three Great Imperial Festivals.

Japan's largest medieval stone pagoda at 6.08 meters, the Iwashimizu Hachimangu Gorinto in Yawata bears no inscription, leaving its origin to several rival legends.

A 15.2-meter granite stupa raised in 1286 by the monk Eison alongside the rebuilt Uji Bridge. Japan's largest surviving pre-modern stone pagoda, standing on a small island just upstream of Byodo-in.

Discover the Kasuga Shrine Main Hall, an Important Cultural Property from the late Kamakura period, nestled within Ujigami Shrine—home to Japan's oldest shrine architecture and a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Uji, Kyoto.

Uji Shrine's main hall is a three-bay nagare-zukuri of the Kamakura period. Until 1883 it was one shrine with Ujigami uphill. A looking-back rabbit guides you here.

Standing in the Kakushoin Cemetery behind Seiryoji Temple in Kyoto's Sagano district, this early Muromachi-period granite hokyoin-to (treasure-print pagoda) features a rare carving technique with circular niches housing half-relief seated Buddhas on each of its four faces. Designated as an Important Cultural Property of Japan in 1960, it represents a masterpiece of medieval stone craftsmanship.

Kajūji's shoin in Yamashina, Kyoto, an Important Cultural Property, was rebuilt from a late-17th-century imperial residence and is noted for its Kajūji-dana shelves.

A granite five-ringed stupa of the late Kamakura period at Gansen-ji, in the Tono hills of southern Kyoto. Its lotus-petal base marks the regional Yamato style.

Gansen-ji's vermilion three-storied pagoda in Kizugawa, Kyoto, dates to 1442. This Important Cultural Property is loved for the carved goblins shouldering its eaves.

A granite thirteen-story pagoda at Gansenji in Kyoto, traditionally dated to 1314, its lowest tier carved with seed syllables of the four Diamond-Realm Buddhas.

Discover the Gansenji Stone Chamber (Sekishitsu), an Important Cultural Property from 1312 in Kizugawa, Kyoto. This rare granite shrine houses a carved Fudō Myōō relief and stands in the serene Tōno no Sato, a hidden Buddhist heritage area near Nara.

This square, thatched, hipped Kannon hall at Shimo-Awano in Kyōtamba was raised before 1539. Ridge tablets fix its date; it is an Important Cultural Property.

Discover the Hongwanji Dendoin, an Important Cultural Property in Kyoto designed by legendary architect Ito Chuta in 1912. This red-brick treasure near Nishi Hongwanji blends Islamic domes, British brickwork, and Japanese design into one extraordinary building.

At Kyoto's Tō-ji, the East Great Gate has stayed shut for centuries. Called the Akazu-mon, it was barred by Ashikaga Takauji in 1336 and still bears arrow marks.

To-ji's widest gate was not built for it. Raised in 1601 as Sanjusangen-do's west gate by Toyotomi Hideyori, it moved here in 1895, an Important Cultural Property.

Behind Tō-ji's lecture hall sits a windowless azekura log storehouse. Dismantling revealed late-Heian timbers, making it the temple's oldest surviving building.

Standing on the windswept northernmost cliff of the Tango Peninsula in Kyoto Prefecture, Kyōgamisaki Lighthouse is a working Meiji-era stone tower first lit on December 25, 1898. It is one of only five "first-order" lighthouses in Japan, and its original French-made Fresnel lens and pioneering mercury-bath rotation mechanism are still in operation today. Designated an Important Cultural Property in 2022, it stands amid the columnar basalt cliffs of the San'in Kaigan UNESCO Global Geopark and offers visitors one of the most dramatic coastal landscapes in western Japan.

Completed in 1921 and designed by Ministry of Communications architect Iwamoto Roku, this former telephone exchange in Kyoto's Nishijin district features a strikingly original façade akin to German Expressionism. Designated an Important Cultural Property as the sole surviving work of the brilliantly gifted architect who died at 29, the building now serves as a coworking and innovation space.