National Treasure

Discover the National Treasure tachi by Rai Kunitsoshi, a rare midare-ba masterpiece from the late Kamakura period. Learn about its exquisite craftsmanship, the Rai school legacy, and how to appreciate Japanese swords in Tokyo.

Explore the Important Cultural Property tantō signed by Shintōgo Kunimitsu, founder of the Sōshū school and teacher of Masamune. Learn about this 13th-century Kamakura-period blade at Tokyo National Museum.

Discover the National Treasure tantō inscribed "Chikushū-jū Sa," a masterwork by the legendary Nanbokuchō-period swordsmith Samonji. Learn about its bold hamon, prestigious lineage among Masamune's Ten Disciples, and how to appreciate Japanese sword artistry.

Discover the National Treasure tantō signed by Nagashige of Bizen Osafune, a masterpiece of Sōshū-den swordsmithing from 1334 once wielded by the legendary appraiser Hon'ami Kōtoku.

Discover the National Treasure tantō by Rai Kunitsugu, a Kamakura-period master swordsmith counted among Masamune's famed Juttetsu. Learn about its Kishū Tokugawa provenance and how to see this rare blade in Japan.

Discover the National Treasure bone repository vessel excavated from Miyajidake Shrine — a stunning Nara-period triple-layered cinerary urn of earthenware, bronze, and blown glass housed at the Tokyo National Museum, revealing ancient Japan's cremation practices and Silk Road connections.

Discover the National Treasure gilt-bronze horse trappings excavated from the Saitobaru Kofun cluster in Miyazaki. Now housed at the Gotoh Museum in Tokyo, these exquisite 6th-century artifacts illuminate ancient Hyuga's role in East Asian diplomacy and craftsmanship.

Discover the Kofuku-ji Kondo Chindangu, a National Treasure collection of over 1,800 sacred ritual objects buried beneath the Central Golden Hall in the 8th century. View gold, silver vessels, mirrors, crystals, and precious gems at the National Treasure Hall in Nara and the Tokyo National Museum.

Discover the Seven-Branched Sword (Shichishitō), a unique National Treasure from the 4th century preserved at Isonokami Shrine in Tenri, Nara. Learn about its gold-inlaid inscription, the Baekje-Japan diplomatic connection, and how to visit this ancient sacred site.

Discover the Todai-ji Kondo Chindangu, a National Treasure collection of 8th-century ritual objects—including legendary swords, crystal vessels, and gilded artifacts—unearthed from beneath Nara's Great Buddha. Learn about their connection to Emperor Shomu, Empress Komyo, and the Shoso-in treasures.

The Bussokuseki at Yakushi-ji Temple in Nara is Japan's oldest Buddha footprint stone, carved in 753 CE and designated a National Treasure. This archaeological artifact preserves the sacred footprints of Shakyamuni Buddha, transmitted from Sarnath in India through Chang'an in China to the ancient Nara capital. Together with the accompanying poem monument — also a National Treasure — it offers a rare window into pre-iconic Buddhist worship and Silk Road cultural exchange during the Nara period.

The Bussokuseki-kahi, a National Treasure enshrined in the Lecture Hall of Yakushi-ji Temple in Nara, is one of Japan's oldest surviving poetry steles, dating to around 770 CE. Bearing 21 poems written in man'yōgana script praising the Buddha's sacred footprints, it preserves an authentic record of Nara-period faith and the earliest Japanese writing. Together with Japan's oldest Buddha Footprint Stone, it offers a profound connection to the history of Buddhism's transmission across Asia.

Discover the Lotus Sutra known as Kunoji-kyo, a National Treasure of Japan featuring exquisite gold and silver decorations created by the imperial court in the 12th century. Learn about its history, artistic value, and where to see it.

Discover the National Treasure tantō signed Yoshimitsu, a Kamakura-period masterpiece by Awataguchi Tōshirō Yoshimitsu, treasured by the Tachibana samurai family for nearly 700 years at Tachibana Museum in Yanagawa, Fukuoka.

This Tang dynasty manuscript (7th–8th century) is the oldest surviving copy of Volume 6 of the Shishuo Xinshu (Shishuo Xinyu), a celebrated Chinese anecdote collection. Designated as a National Treasure, this fragment features elegant Tang calligraphy, Heian-period reading marks, and esoteric Buddhist texts on the verso — a testament to over a millennium of Sino-Japanese cultural exchange.

Discover the Sakuragaoka Dōtaku, a National Treasure collection of 14 bronze bells and 7 bronze halberds from the Yayoi period, unearthed in Kobe. See rare pictorial bronze bells at Kobe City Museum.

Discover the Ryūsui-mon Dōtaku, National Treasure bronze bells adorned with flowing water patterns and pictorial scenes of Yayoi-period life, housed at Kobe City Museum in the heart of Kobe's historic foreign settlement.

Discover the National Treasure Amida Triad on Silk at Renge Sanmai-in, Mount Kōya, Wakayama. This Kamakura-period Buddhist masterpiece features a unique iconography with Amida Buddha forming the teaching mudrā. Learn about its artistic significance, the legend of monk Myōhen, and how to visit Kōyasan Reihōkan museum.

Discover Inuyama Castle, one of only five National Treasure castle keeps in Japan. Built in 1537, this original wooden tower offers panoramic views of the Kiso River and Nobi Plain, a charming Edo-period castle town, and centuries of samurai history in Aichi Prefecture.

Discover Jo-an, one of only three National Treasure teahouses in Japan. Built in 1618 by tea master Oda Uraku, younger brother of Oda Nobunaga, this masterpiece of tea ceremony architecture awaits in the serene Uraku-en Garden beside Inuyama Castle, Aichi Prefecture.