National Treasure

Discover Sanjusangendo, Kyoto's extraordinary National Treasure featuring 1,001 Kannon statues in Japan's longest wooden hall. Learn about its history, cultural significance, visiting tips, and nearby attractions.

Discover the Kegon Engi Emaki, a National Treasure at Kōzan-ji Temple in Kyoto. These 13th-century illustrated handscrolls depict the legendary Korean founders of Kegon Buddhism and feature Japan's earliest speech-bubble-like dialogue—a forerunner of manga storytelling.

A National Treasure at Nishi Honganji, Kyoto: a handscroll on which Shinran, founder of Shin Buddhism, copied the Amida Sutra and noted commentaries in the margins.

Explore the Ishinpō (Volumes 1, 5, 7, 9 & 10 fragments) at Ninnaji Temple in Kyoto — Japan's oldest medical encyclopedia compiled in 984 CE. Learn about this National Treasure's history, significance, and how to see it at the UNESCO World Heritage temple.

Discover the Kizaemon Ido, a humble Korean rice bowl that became the most celebrated tea bowl in Japanese history. Learn about its fascinating provenance, the legend of the curse, and where to see this National Treasure.

Discover the National Treasure Uta-awase (Volume 6, Ten-Volume Edition) at Kyoto's Yōmei Bunko — Japan's oldest anthology of poetry contest records, planned by regent Fujiwara no Yorimichi. This Heian-period masterpiece features exquisite kana calligraphy and preserves 170 years of courtly poetry traditions. Learn about its cultural significance, how to visit, and nearby heritage sites.

Discover the Ōhi, a rare National Treasure Buddhist shoulder cloth from Tang-dynasty China, brought to Japan by the monk Kūkai. Deposited at the Kyoto National Museum, this exquisite textile reveals over 1,200 years of Shingon Buddhist history.

The Ōte-kagami at Kyoto's Yōmei Bunko gathers 307 calligraphy fragments across two oversized albums, from a 20-line Ōjōmu sutra leaf to a hand by Emperor Saga.

Discover the Omuro Sōshōki, a National Treasure housed at UNESCO World Heritage Site Ninnaji Temple in Kyoto. This six-scroll Kamakura-period manuscript chronicles the Buddhist ceremonies and achievements of the imperial abbots who led one of Japan's most prestigious monzeki temples.

The Kaifu Makie Kesa-bako, a National Treasure held by Tō-ji temple in Kyoto, is a masterpiece of Heian-period togidashi makie lacquerwork. Created to store a Buddhist vestment linked to the monk Kūkai, the box features gold and silver sea motifs and ranks among the oldest surviving examples of Japanese makie art.

Discover the Kagura Wagon Hifu, a National Treasure scroll from the Heian period preserving Japan's oldest sacred kagura songs with wagon zither notation, held at the Yomei Bunko in Kyoto.

Discover the National Treasure handscroll penned by Emperor Kameyama in 1299, articulating his founding vision for Zenrin-ji Temple—now Nanzen-ji, the highest-ranking Zen temple in Japan. Explore the document's historical significance, the emperor's story, and the magnificent temple complex in Kyoto's Higashiyama district.

Discover Kanjō Rekimei, a National Treasure handwritten by Kūkai (Kōbō Daishi), one of Japan's greatest calligraphers. This rare 9th-century document at Jingo-ji Temple records the historic first esoteric Buddhist initiation ceremonies in Japan, with Saichō's name at the top.

The National Treasure Kanmuryōjukyō Chū, preserved at Nishi Hongan-ji Temple in Kyoto, is a Kamakura-period handscroll in which Shinran, the founder of Jōdo Shinshū Buddhism, copied the Contemplation Sutra and filled every margin with meticulous annotations from commentaries by the Chinese master Shan-tao. Discovered in 1943, this rare autograph manuscript offers an extraordinary glimpse into the young founder's rigorous scriptural study and spiritual development.

Discover the National Treasure bokuseki calligraphy by Chinese Chan master Xutang Zhiyu, preserved at Daitoku-ji temple in Kyoto. Learn about its Zen heritage, tea ceremony significance, and how to view this masterpiece.

The Bandō-bon is the sole surviving manuscript of the Kyōgyōshinshō written in the hand of Shinran Shōnin, founder of Jōdo Shinshū Buddhism. Designated a National Treasure, this 13th-century masterwork bears decades of revisions in red and black ink, hidden stylus marks discovered during restoration, and a dramatic survival story from the Great Kantō Earthquake. Discover its significance, viewing opportunities at the Kyoto National Museum, and related heritage sites including Higashi Honganji.

Discover the Gyokuhen (Yupian) Volume 27 at Kōzan-ji Temple in Kyoto—a National Treasure and Tang dynasty manuscript of the oldest Chinese character dictionary, lost in China but preserved in Japan for over 1,400 years.

Eleven signed waka sheets from a 1200 poetry session on the Kumano road, led by retired emperor Go-Toba, now one National Treasure scroll at Nishi Hongan-ji, Kyoto.

Discover the Kumano Kaishi at Yomei Bunko — three National Treasure calligraphy sheets penned by Emperor Go-Toba, Fujiwara no Ietaka, and Jakuren during sacred Kumano pilgrimages around 1200 CE. Learn about their literary significance, the Shin Kokin Wakashū connection, and how to experience these masterpieces of early Kamakura-period calligraphy.

Discover the National Treasure bokuseki by Yuan-dynasty Zen master Gulin Qingmao, bestowed upon his Japanese disciple Getsurin Dōkō in 1327. Now deposited at Kyoto National Museum, this masterpiece of Zen calligraphy embodies centuries of cross-cultural spiritual exchange between China and Japan.