Past Exhibitions

Special Exhibition Celebrating the Completion of Repairs to Jōruriji’s National Treasure Amida Statues

Numinous Minamiyamashiro
Treasures from the Mountains between Nara and Kyoto

July 8, 2023(Sat)–September 3, 2023(Sun)

The East Wing and West Wing, Nara National Museum

National Treasure
The First of the Jōruriji Nine-Figure Set of Amida Nyorai (Skt. Amitābha) Statues
Jōruriji Temple, Kizugawa City, Kyoto Prefecture

Thematic Exhibition from the Permanent Collection

Newly Conserved Cultural Properties

February 21, 2023(Tues)–March 19, 2023(Sun)

The West Wing, Nara National Museum

Feature Exhibition

Treasures of Tōdaiji’s Omizutori Ritual

February 4, 2023(Sat)–March 19, 2023(Sun)

The East Wing, Nara National Museum

Special Exhibition Celebrating the Cyclical Rebuilding of Wakamiya Shrine

Splendors of Court Devotion
Shrine Treasures from Wakamiya and Kasuga Taisha in Nara

December 10, 2022(Sat)–January 22, 2023(Sun)

The East Wing and West Wing, Nara National Museum

National Treasure
Ancient Shrine Treasures of Wakamiya: Silver Crane
Kasuga Taisha, Nara

Special Exhibition

The 74th Annual Exhibition of Shōsō-in Treasures

October 29, 2022(Sat)–November 14, 2022(Mon)

The New Wings of the Nara National Museum

North Section
Eight-Lobed White Bronze Mirror Inlaid with Gold and Silver Cutouts in Black Lacquer on the Back

Special Exhibition Celebrating the Conservation of the Jōkyō-Era Taima Mandala

Chūjō-hime and the Taima Mandala
Weaving Tales of Faith

July 16, 2022(Sat)–August 28, 2022(Sun)

The West Wing, Nara National Museum

Important Cultural Property
The Jōkyō-era Taima Mandala
(Taimadera Temple, Nara)

Exploring Art

Discover the Buddhist Pantheon

July 16, 2022(Sat)–August 28, 2022(Sun)

The East Wing, Nara National Museum

Our museum mascots will show you around the exhibition!

Special Exhibition

Temple of Great Peace
The World of Daianji and Buddhist Art in Ancient Nara

April 23, 2022(Sat)–June 19, 2022(Sun)

The New Wings of the Nara National Museum

Important Cultural Property | Yōryū Kannon (Skt. Avalokiteśvara)
(Daianji Temple, Nara)

Special Exhibition

Sacred Treasures from Ancient Nara:
The Eleven-Headed Kannon of Shōrinji Temple

February 5, 2022(Sat)–March 27, 2022(Sun)

The East Wing, Nara National Museum

The National Treasure image of Jūichimen Kannon (Skt. Ekādaśamukha) from Shōrinji Temple is revered as one of the great masterworks of Tenpyō-period sculpture. This statue will be on display alongside others from the temple where it was once enshrined, Daigorinji, part of Ōmiwa Jinja Shrine. Devotion to the natural world is central to Ōmiwa Jinja faith, and objects reflecting beliefs from this shrine excavated from the mountain that is its central deity, Mount Miwa, are to be showcased as well.

National Treasure
The Eleven-Headed Kannon
(Shōrinji Temple, Nara)

Feature Exhibition

Treasures of Tōdaiji’s Omizutori Ritual

February 5, 2022(Sat)–March 27, 2022(Sun)

The West Wing, Nara National Museum

The Illustrated Legends of the Nigatsudō, Scroll Two
(Tōdaiji Temple, Nara)

Special Exhibition

A Long View: Masterworks of Painting from the Fujita Museum

December 10, 2021(Fri)–January 23, 2022(Sun)

The New Wings of the Nara National Museum

“Great Lion” by Takeuchi Seihō
(Fujita Museum, Osaka)

Thematic Exhibition from the Permanent Collection

Newly Conserved Cultural Properties

March 1, 2022(Tues)–March 27, 2022(Sun)

The West Wing, Nara National Museum

Peeling paint stabilized on one of the bodhisattva statues from within the Portable Shrine with Gilt Bronze Fittings for a Shugendō Mountain Ascetic (Yamabushi)
(Nara National Museum)

Special Exhibition

The 73rd Annual Exhibition of Shōsō-in Treasures

October 30, 2021(Sat)–November 15, 2021(Mon)

The New Wings of the Nara National Museum

The Shōsō-in treasures convey the spirit of the Tenpyō era, their brilliance miraculously surviving to the present day. This autumn, we invite you to experience their eternal resplendence at the Nara National Museum’s annual Shōsō-in exhibition.

Genkan Lute of Shitan with Mother-of-Pearl Inlay

Special Exhibition

Buddhist Art Paradise
Jewels of the Nara National Museum

July 17, 2021(Sat)–September 12, 2021(Sun)

The East Wing and West Wing, Nara National Museum

Founded in 1895 (Meiji 28) with the directive to gather and exhibit Buddhist art, the Nara National Museum was only the second national museum to open in this country. This exhibition celebrates the institution’s history, showcasing its greatest jewels of painting, sculpture, sutras and more to offer a rich account of 1,400 years of Buddhist art in Japan. We invite you to delight in this bountiful selection of masterworks from the Nara National Museum’s collection.

National Treasure
Eleven-Headed Avalokiteśvara
(Nara National Museum)

Special Exhibition  The 1400th Memorial for Prince Shōtoku

HŌRYŪJI
Prince Shōtoku and Treasures of Early Buddhist Faith in Japan

April 27, 2021(Tues)–June 20, 2021(Sun)

The East Wing and West Wing, Nara National Museum

2021 (Reiwa 3) is the 1,400th anniversary of Prince Shōtoku’s passing. We mark this important occasion with an exhibition bringing together myriad works of importance to Shōtoku devotion, showcasing treasures from Hōryūji Temple and beyond.

National Treasure
Seated Prince Shōtoku
(Hōryūji Temple, Nara)

Feature Exhibition

The Beginnings of the Nara Imperial Museum:Traces of Effort in Architectural Drawings and Documents
Traces of Effort in Architectural Drawings and Documents

February 6, 2021(Sat)–March 21, 2021(Sun)

Cross Section, Front Elevation
Main Entrance to the Nara Museum in 1:20 Scale
(From “The Imperial Household Architectural Drawings of the Nara Museum”)
(Nara National Museum)

Feature Exhibition

Treasures of Tōdaiji’s Omizutori Ritual

February 6, 2021(Sat)–March 21, 2021(Sun)

The West Wing, Nara National Museum

Flower Garland Sutra
(J. Kegon kyo; Skt. Avataṃsaka Sūtra) in Silver Paint on Indigo-dyed Paper
(Nara National Museum)
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