Travel to meet Japan’s old buildings.

Scroll sideways to move through the periods

1. from 593

   Asuka

   2 listed

   

   Horyu-ji

   Buddhism brought continental building techniques to Japan, and the first temples were built.

2. from 710

   Nara

   9 listed

   

   Todai-ji

   With Heijō-kyō as the capital, the state built many great temples.

3. from 794

   Heian

   13 listed

   

   Byodo-in

   The capital moved to Kyoto, and a way of building suited to Japan's climate took shape.

4. from 1185

   Kamakura

   45 listed

   

   Itsukushima Shrine

   Under warrior rule, new styles such as the Daibutsu style and the Zen style arrived.

5. from 1336

   Muromachi

   27 listed

   

   Jisho-ji (Ginkaku-ji)

   Zen temples spread, and the residences that led to the shoin style appeared.

6. from 1573

   Momoyama

   22 listed

   

   Matsumoto Castle

   An age of unification, with castle keeps and lavish palace halls.

7. from 1603

   Edo

   29 listed

   

   Nikko Toshogu

   A long peace in which temples, shrines, farmhouses and townscapes flourished with regional craft.

8. from 1868

   Meiji

   5 listed

   

   Former Tomioka Silk Mill

   From the Meiji period on, buildings took in Western techniques and styles.

• Temples

  103 listed

  Main halls, pagodas and gates of Buddhist temples.

• Shrines

  32 listed

  Main halls and worship halls of Shinto shrines.

• Castles

  6 listed

  Keeps, turrets and the other buildings of a castle.

• Residences

  1 listed

  Tea rooms and study halls built for daily life and hospitality.

• Farmhouses

  1 listed

  Farmhouses and townhouses that show how ordinary people lived.

• Modern architecture

  5 listed

  Western-style and industrial buildings from the Meiji era onward.

• Other buildings

  4 listed

  Schools, teahouses and other buildings outside these groups.

• Historic districts

  130 listed

  Old streets where traditional buildings survive as a group, selected by the national government.

1. 01

   National Treasure vs. Important Cultural Property: How Buildings Are Designated

   A National Treasure is the higher tier within Important Cultural Properties. This guide sorts out the numbers, the designation process and how both differ from registered properties, following the Agency for Cultural Affairs.

2. 02

   How to Read Roof Shapes and Materials

   Learn the three basic roof forms, kirizuma, yosemune and irimoya, and the differences between honkawara tile, hinoki-bark and wooden-shingle roofing, using examples from Horyu-ji and Muro-ji.

3. 03

   Reading a Five-Story Pagoda: Structure and Five National Treasure Examples

   Using Horyu-ji as the benchmark, this guide covers the central pillar and other structural features, then compares the pagodas of Muro-ji, Daigo-ji, Haguro-san and Rurikoji by era and roof material.

4. 04

   Important Preservation Districts for Groups of Traditional Buildings and Their Town Types

   How the system that protects whole townscapes rather than single buildings works, and what merchant, post, samurai and teahouse town types mean, using the Agency for Cultural Affairs list and real examples.

• Eras, structures and locations are edited and translated by us from the Agency for Cultural Affairs’ database of nationally designated cultural properties. The Agency and the national government did not produce this site.
• For places with a full write-up, we list access, opening hours and fees checked against official information. These can change, so note the date checked.
• Every page shows its sources and the date we checked them.