Kofukuji National Treasure Museum

The National Treasure Hall (Kokuhōkan) is located in the expansive, green Nara Park, about a 10-minute walk from Kintetsu Nara Station. It houses many National Treasures and Important Cultural Properties, including Buddhist statues and paintings, handed down through 1,250 years of Kōfuku-ji’s history. Built in 1959 in Tenpyō style, it reopened after a major renovation in 2018. With famous National Treasures spanning from the Nara period to the Edo period, it is often called one of Japan’s largest repositories of National Treasures. Among its most celebrated works are a 5-meter-tall Thousand-Armed Kannon (Senju Kannon) and the beautiful Ashura statue, praised as a "Tenpyō-era beautiful youth." Other impressive statues—such as the National Treasure Kongōrikishi (guardian deities), the Ten Great Disciples, the Eight Legions, and the Lantern-Bearing Demon and Dragon-Bearing Demon—are now displayed in an open format without glass cases, allowing visitors to view these rare masterpieces up close. The Eight Legions and Ten Great Disciples are temple treasures from the Tenpyō era, while the Lantern-Bearing Demon/Dragon-Bearing Demon and the Kongōrikishi date to the Kamakura period. Also on display is the hall’s oldest piece, a gilt-bronze Buddha head from the Asuka period that symbolizes Hakuhō culture. Please note that photography is prohibited inside.