National Treasures of Kyoto

A Nara-period illustrated sutra of the Buddha's life, pictures above and text below, held by Johonrendaiji, Kyoto; a National Treasure since 1952.

At Kyoto's Kitano Tenmangu, eight National Treasure scrolls of about 1219 trace Sugawara no Michizane from official to vengeful thunder god to the deity Tenjin.

Tawaraya Sotatsu's pair of gold-leaf screens of the Wind God and Thunder God, owned by Kenninji in Kyoto and deposited with the Kyoto National Museum.

Momoyama gold-ground wall paintings of pines and flowers by Hasegawa Tohaku's workshop, made for Hideyoshi's Shounji and now kept at Chishakuin in Kyoto.

Gold-ground wall paintings at Chishakuin, Kyoto, including Tohaku's Maple and his son Kyuzo's Cherry Blossoms, made for Hideyoshi's Shounji guest hall.

Four gold-ground sliding-door panels of pine and plum by Hasegawa Tohaku's workshop, made for Hideyoshi's Shounji guest hall and now kept at Chishakuin.

Four gold-ground alcove panels of a great pine with sunset hibiscus and chrysanthemums by Hasegawa Tohaku's workshop, now at Chishakuin in Kyoto. National Treasure.

A Kamakura portrait of Shinran drawn in ink lines alone by Sen'amidabutsu, son of Fujiwara no Nobuzane; one of the finest nise-e, owned by Hongwanji in Kyoto.

The forty-eight scroll illustrated biography of Honen at Chion-in, Kyoto, 548 metres long and among the largest picture scrolls; a National Treasure since 1955.

A pair of Heian Two World mandalas at Jingoji in Kyoto, drawn only in gold and silver on purple twill silk; the oldest large mandala, recovered by Mongaku in 1184.

A 15th-century ink painting at Taizoin, Kyoto: Josetsu's answer to shogun Ashikaga Yoshimochi's riddle of catching a catfish with a gourd, with 31 Zen poems.

Daigo-ji's eighth-century Illustrated Sutra of Cause and Effect runs painted scenes of the Buddha's life above the text, an early root of Japan's picture scrolls.

A National Treasure ink scroll at Konchi-in, Kyoto, dated 1413: an imagined valley retreat under poems by six Zen monks, Japan's oldest surviving studio painting.

A 1338 National Treasure portrait of retired emperor Hanazono by the monk Goshin, bearing the emperor's own inscription that modestly calls his own features humble.

Discover the Hōjō Shōhekiga at Jukō-in, Daitoku-ji Temple in Kyoto — 46 panels of National Treasure sliding door paintings by Kanō Eitoku and his father Shōei. Learn about these Momoyama-era masterpieces, their connection to Sen no Rikyū, and how to visit during special exhibitions.

At the Watanuki Kannonyama Tumulus in Takasaki, Gunma, an unlooted 6th-century chamber held grave goods linked to Baekje and China, now a National Treasure.

A National Treasure cast in 858 on Mt. Hiei, this bell bears a dated mirror-script inscription and is Japan's sixth oldest dated bell, now at the Sagawa Art Museum.

A thirteenth-century Southern Song painting of water buffalo attributed to Yan Ciping, owned by the Sen-oku Hakukokan; a National Treasure since 1957.

An unsigned National Treasure tanto by Soshu Sadamune at the Tokyo National Museum, once owned by a Karatsu lord, Toyotomi Hideyoshi, and the Tokugawa shoguns.

A twelfth-century manuscript of the Manyoshu, Japan's oldest poetry anthology, copied by the celebrated calligrapher Fujiwara no Sadanobu onto luxurious mica-printed paper. Treasured by the Maeda lords of Kaga for over three centuries before being presented to the Emperor Meiji, it was designated a National Treasure in 2023 and is one of the Five Great Manyoshu of the Heian period.