Special Historic Sites

Japanese castle complex

architectural structure

thumb|Kinkaku-ji, Kyoto, 2024 , officially named , is a Zen Buddhist temple in Kyoto, Japan and a tourist attraction. It is designated as a World Heritage Site, a National Special Historic Site, a National Special Landscape, and one of the 17 Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto. The temple is nicknamed after its reliquary (shariden), the , whose top two floors are coated in 0.5 μm gold leaf. The current pavilion was rebuilt in 1955 after being destroyed in an arson attack.

Japanese castle in Chūō-ku, Osaka, Japan

castle in Tokyo, Japan

Japanese castle located in Nagoya, central Japan

castle

thumb|This torii at the [[Itsukushima Shrine welcomes visitors to the island.]] thumb|Overview of Miyajima/Itsukushima island in the Inland Sea from the east direction, Japan thumb|View of Ferry, Mount Misen and torii of Itsukushima Shrine from on the sea. is an island in the western part of the Inland Sea of Japan, located in the northwest of Hiroshima Bay. It is popularly known as , which in Japanese means "Shrine Island". The island is one of Hayashi Gahō's Three Views of Japan specified in 1643. Itsukushima is part of the city of Hatsukaichi in Hiroshima Prefecture. The island was part of

, officially named , is a Zen temple in the Sakyo ward of Kyoto, Japan. It is one of the constructions that represent the Higashiyama Culture of the Muromachi period.

thumb|Groundplan of Heijō-kyō thumb|Closer map of the major sites of Heijō-kyō was the Capital of Japan during most of the Nara period, from 710 to 740 and again from 745 to 784. The imperial palace is a listed UNESCO World Heritage Site together with other places in the city of Nara (cf. Historic Monuments of Ancient Nara).

is one of the most famous imperial and ancient Buddhist temples in Japan, and was once one of the Seven Great Temples of Nanto, located in Nara. Originally built in the 7th century in the old capital of Fujiwara-kyō, the temple as it stands (built in 730) is said to be a scrupulous copy of the original. The temple is the headquarters of the Hossō school of Japanese Buddhism. Yakushi-ji is one of the sites that are collectively inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site under the name of "Historic Monuments of Ancient Nara."

one of the primary castles of Oda Nobunaga

castle

is a star fort in the Japanese city of Hakodate on the island of Hokkaido. The fortress was completed in 1866. It was the main headquarters of the short-lived Republic of Ezo.

imperial residence in the Japanese capital city Heijō-kyō (today's Nara), during most of the Nara period

right|thumb|280px|Map of Fujiwara-kyō was the Imperial capital of Japan for sixteen years, between 694 and 710. It was located in Yamato Province (present-day Kashihara in Nara Prefecture), having been moved from nearby Asuka, and remained the capital until its relocation to Heijō-kyō, present-day Nara. It was the first in Japanese history to have been a planned city based on a square grid pattern modeled after Chang'an, the capital of Tang dynasty China.

is a Buddhist temple in the town of Hiraizumi in southern Iwate Prefecture, Japan. It is the head temple of the Tendai sect in Tōhoku region of northern Honshu. The temple claims it was founded in 850 by Ennin, the third chief abbot of the sect. George Sansom states Chūson-jí was founded by Fujiwara no Kiyohira in 1095. Chūson-jí was designated as a Special Historic Site in 1979 and in June 2011 was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site as a part of the "Historic Monuments and Sites of Hiraizumi".

park in Chuo, Tokyo, Japan

historic ruins in Fukui, Japan

Castle ruins in Miyagi Prefecture, Japan

prehistoric site located in Yoshinogari, Saga, Japan

thumb|The modern temple of Mōtsū-ji with an incense burner in the foreground

thumb|260px|Daigenkan thumb|260px|Karamon (National Treasures of Japan)

Jōmon period archaeological site and museum

regional government in Kyushu from the 8th to the 12th centuries

kofun

thumb|Panorama of fall colors thumb|Engetsu-kyō stone bridge thumb|Tsutenkyo bridge The is a large urban park in the Koishikawa neighborhood of Bunkyō, Tokyo, Japan. The Japanese garden dates from the early Edo period. and is one of three surviving daimyō gardens of the many that were created during that period, the others being the Rikugi-en and the Hama Rikyū gardens.

ancient Japanese fortification

cultural monument defined under the Act of the Protection of Cultural Properties of Japan

Japanese castle located in Hizen province (now Saga prefecture)

was a Buddhist temple located in Hiraizumi in what is now southern Iwate Prefecture in the Tōhoku region of Japan. The temple fell into ruins during the Kamakura period; however, the pond from its gardens has been restored to its original dimensions, and has been designated a nationally designated Place of Scenic Beauty in 2005. The ruins are also covered as part of the Special National Historic Site designation for neighboring Mōtsū-ji. Together with other important sites in Hiraizumi, the ruins form part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site Historic Monuments and Sites of Hiraizumi.

former han school in Mito, Japan

ruined castle in Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan

kofun in Asuka, Nara

archaeological site in Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan

small fortification attached to Osaka castle

Shingon temple in Takamatsu, Kagawa Prefecture, Japan, which is Temple 80 on the Shikoku 88 temple pilgrimage

is former temple in Hiraizumi in what is now southern Iwate Prefecture in the Tōhoku region of Japan. The site is designated as both a Special Place of Scenic Beauty and a Special National Historic Site.

kofun

stone memorial in Japan

right|thumb|290px|Model of Yamada-dera Temple at the time of its construction. A part of the 1/1000 model of Fujiwara-kyo in the Kashihara-shi Fujiwara-kyo reference room. was a Buddhist temple established in the Asuka period in Sakurai, Nara Prefecture, Japan. The area was designated a National Historic Site in 1921, with its status elevated to a Special National Historic Site in 1952. It also forms part of a grouping of sites submitted in 2007 for future inscription on the UNESCO World Heritage List: Asuka-Fujiwara: Archaeological sites of Japan’s Ancient Capitals and Related Properties. Ex

8th century Japanese stele

kofun period decorated kofun burial mounds in Japan

Buddhist temple in Nara Prefecture, Japan

36 gates of Edo Castle

Japanese late Jōmon period archaeological site

noteworthy Japanese roads

is a Buddhist temple located in the city of Utsunomiya, Tochigi Prefecture, in northern Kantō region of Japan. The temple is famous for its bas-relief carvings on a cliff face. It belongs to the Tendai sect and its honzon is a statue of Senjū Kannon Bosatsu (Sahasrabhūja). The temple's full name is Tenkai-zan Jodo-in Ōya-ji (天開山 浄土院 大谷寺).The temple is the 19th stop on the Bandō Sanjūsankasho pilgrimage route.

Ancient shell midden in Chiba, Kantō, Japan

was a Buddhist temple located in the city of Hirakata, Osaka, Japan. The temple is now in ruins, and its former precincts were designated a National Historic Site in 1941, with the designation changed to a Special National Historic Site in 1952. The site was opened to the public as one of Japan's first archaeological parks in 1965.

stone monuments in Japan