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Kozenji Temple
Buddhist Image Wooden Seated Dainichi Nyorai Category Nyorai (Tathagata)
静岡県浜松市中央区大蒲町95-3
Visiting Status Normally closed to the public (generally unveiled around 10:00–12:00 on Coming of Age Day each year)
GentlenessPeacefulnessSolemnity
The wooden seated Dainichi Nyorai is enshrined in the Dainichido Hall at Kozenji Temple. Measuring 109.5 cm high, it is a mid-Heian-period image carved from a single piece of cypress, finished with lacquer and gold leaf, and with carved eyes. Designated a Shizuoka Prefectural Tangible Cultural Property, it retains characteristic mid-Heian features in its gentle, refined face, substantial modeling from the abdomen to the waist, and wave-pattern drapery over the knees, and is regarded as one of the oldest Buddhist images in the prefecture. Despite damage to the left arm and the loss of the urna, much of its original form survives. Normally closed to the public, it is generally unveiled from around 10:00 to noon on Coming of Age Day each year.
Daikakuji Zenshuin Temple
Buddhist Image Yaizu Senju Daikannon Category Bosatsu (Bodhisattva)
静岡県焼津市大覚寺1-19-1
Visiting Status Regular viewing available (9:00–16:00 / irregular closing days; individual admission free)
SolemnityGentlenessDignity
The Yaizu Senju Daikannon is the principal image of Daikakuji Zenshuin Temple, enshrined in the Senju Daikannon Hall. This monumental wooden, lacquered and gilded Thousand-Armed Kannon Bosatsu was consecrated in 2003 and created by Buddhist sculptor Watanabe Seizan using Kiso cypress more than 300 years old. The body is about 4.2 m high and the head about 1.8 m, while its many golden arms create an overwhelming presence. Created as a prayer for happiness and peace over the coming thousand years, it remains a focus of worship through the observance held on the 18th of each month and daily morning services. Individual visitors can normally view it at close range free of charge from 9:00 to 16:00.
Hodaiin Temple
Buddhist Image Wooden Standing Amida Nyorai (White Principal Image) Category Nyorai (Tathagata)
静岡県静岡市葵区常磐町2丁目13-2
Visiting Status Regular viewing available (9:00–16:00 / last admission 15:40; closed Mondays and specified dates; advance reservation required on weekends)
NobilitySolemnityStillness
The principal image of Hodaiin Temple is a wooden standing Amida Nyorai known as the “White Principal Image.” An Important Cultural Property of Japan from the Kamakura period, it is made from joined cypress wood. According to temple tradition, Tokugawa Ieyasu received the image from the priest Toyo of Daijuji Temple in Mikawa and kept it in Sunpu Castle; after Ieyasu's death, the second shogun Hidetada donated it to Hodaiin. Its name derives from the white gofun ground beneath the gold leaf, and together with the “Black Principal Image” of Zojoji it was revered as one of Ieyasu's protective Buddhist images. It can now be viewed for an admission fee in the inner sanctuary of the Main Hall.
Ryozenji Temple
Buddhist Image Wooden Standing Thousand-Armed Kannon Bosatsu with Twenty-Eight Attendants, Fujin and Raijin Category Bosatsu (Bodhisattva)
静岡県静岡市清水区大内597
Visiting Status Viewing available at any time
MysterySolemnityStillness
Ryozenji Temple preserves a wooden standing Thousand-Armed Kannon Bosatsu, 107.0 cm high and carved from a single block of wood, dating to the first half of the 12th century in the late Heian period. Designated a Shizuoka Prefectural Tangible Cultural Property, it is accompanied by a group of Twenty-Eight Attendants measuring 64.0–93.0 cm. Most date from before the late 13th century, with some from the late 14th century. Although the figures of Mawara-o and Ryunanda-o are missing, the survival of an almost complete group outside a major cultural center is rare. Images of Fujin and Raijin are also preserved with the group. Ryozenji is one of the Suruga Seven Kannon temples, and the prefectural cultural-property database lists the images as open to the public with viewing available at any time.
Kawazu Heian Buddhist Statue Exhibition Hall
Buddhist Image Wooden Seated Yakushi Nyorai (Nanzenji Buddhist Images) Category Nyorai (Tathagata)
静岡県賀茂郡河津町谷津138
Visiting Status Regular viewing available (10:00–16:00 / irregular closing days; scheduled closure September 28, 2026–January 22, 2027)
DignityDepthStillness
This wooden seated Yakushi Nyorai from Nanzenji Temple is displayed at the Kawazu Heian Buddhist Statue Exhibition Hall. The principal image of Nanzenji, it measures 117.7 cm high and is carved from a single block of wood. Kawazu Town dates it to the early Heian period, and the figure holds a medicine jar in its left hand. It is the central image among the 26 Buddhist and Shinto sculptures transmitted from the Nanzenji hall, most of which are thought to date from the 10th–11th centuries. The group was designated an Important Cultural Property of Japan on August 27, 2024. The hall normally allows close viewing of these images, which have long been preserved by the local community, but is scheduled to close from September 28, 2026 to January 22, 2027 while twelve works are lent to the MOA Museum of Art exhibition “Buddhist Images of Izu.”
Kawazu Heian Buddhist Statue Exhibition Hall
Buddhist Image Wooden Standing Eleven-Faced Kannon Bosatsu (Nara Period, Nanzenji Buddhist Images) Category Bosatsu (Bodhisattva)
静岡県賀茂郡河津町谷津138
Visiting Status Regular viewing available (10:00–16:00 / irregular closing days; scheduled closure September 28, 2026–January 22, 2027)
MysteryNobilityDepth
One of the wooden standing Eleven-Faced Kannon Bosatsu images from Nanzenji Temple is displayed at the Kawazu Heian Buddhist Statue Exhibition Hall. Carved from a single block of kaya wood and retaining archaic features, it has been assessed by Japan’s Agency for Cultural Affairs as dating back to the 8th-century Nara period. It is exceptionally early among surviving wooden Buddhist sculptures in eastern Japan, and Kawazu Town introduces it as one of the oldest Buddhist images in eastern Japan. It belongs to the group of 26 Buddhist and Shinto sculptures transmitted from the Nanzenji hall, designated together as an Important Cultural Property of Japan on August 27, 2024. It can normally be viewed at close range in the exhibition hall, which is scheduled to close from September 28, 2026 to January 22, 2027 while twelve works are lent to the MOA Museum of Art exhibition “Buddhist Images of Izu.”
Shinkomyoji Temple Annex
Buddhist Image Wooden Standing Amida Nyorai Category Nyorai (Tathagata)
静岡県静岡市葵区伝馬町11-3
Visiting Status Advance contact required (9:00–17:00)
RefinementNobilityPower
This wooden standing Amida Nyorai is enshrined in the Main Hall on the seventh floor of Kashokan at the Shinkomyoji Temple Annex. An Important Cultural Property of Japan from the Kamakura period, it is made from cypress split and joined front-to-back, hollowed inside, and fitted with crystal eyes. A wooden five-ringed stupa is enclosed in the chest cavity. Its youthful full cheeks, broad substantial shoulders, and deeply carved drapery closely resemble the early style of Kaikei. The temple explains that, although it cannot be identified as a work by Kaikei himself, it was likely made by a sculptor of his school after around 1212, consciously following Kaikei's style from before he received a formal Buddhist title. It is an outstanding early example of the An'ami style and, according to Shizuoka Prefecture, can be viewed from 9:00 to 17:00 with advance contact.
Ryozenji Temple
Buddhist Image Wooden Standing Kongo Rikishi (Agyo and Ungyo) Category Tenbu (Deva)
静岡県静岡市清水区大内597
Visiting Status Viewable from the temple grounds at any time (Nio Gate)
PowerDignityTense Presence
Two wooden standing Kongo Rikishi are enshrined in the Nio Gate of Ryozenji Temple. The open-mouthed Agyo measures 221.6 cm high and the closed-mouthed Ungyo 216.8 cm, both monumental figures over two meters tall. Their large heads, weighty physiques, and construction with the head and torso carved from a single block without hollowing preserve features associated with Heian-period single-block sculpture. At the same time, the modeling of the buttocks visible beneath the garments reflects newer tendencies seen from the Kamakura period onward. Designated a Shizuoka Prefectural Tangible Cultural Property, the pair conveys the transition from Heian to Kamakura sculptural practice and stands in the Nio Gate, itself designated an Important Cultural Property of Japan, where the figures can be viewed from the approach.
Kokuseiji Temple
Buddhist Image Wooden Standing Kongo Rikishi (Agyo and Ungyo) Category Tenbu (Deva)
静岡県伊豆の国市奈古谷1240-1
Visiting Status Viewable at any time (Nio Gate)
PowerDignityTense Presence
Two wooden standing Kongo Rikishi are enshrined in the Nio Gate leading to Bishamondo Hall, a guardian sanctuary associated with Kokuseiji Temple. The Agyo figure measures 215 cm and the Ungyo 200 cm. Both are Kamakura-period sculptures made from joined kaya wood, with coloring and carved eyes. While retaining elements of late-Heian style, their large facial features and exaggerated musculature in the arms and legs convey the power characteristic of Kamakura sculpture. The drapery winding around Agyo’s right arm and the Unkei-like face of Ungyo are especially noted. Designated Shizuoka Prefectural Tangible Cultural Properties, they form part of the Buddhist sculpture group transmitted by Kokuseiji and remain viewable in the gate.
Izusan Local History Museum
Buddhist Image Wooden Crowned Amida Nyorai with Attendants Category Nyorai (Tathagata)
静岡県熱海市伊豆山708-2
Visiting Status Regular viewing available (9:00–16:00 / closed Wednesdays; when Wednesday is a holiday, closed the following day)
GentlenessNobilityStillness
The Izusan Local History Museum displays a wooden Crowned Amida Nyorai with attendant figures. A Shizuoka Prefectural Tangible Cultural Property from the late Heian period, the central Amida measures 67.6 cm high, while the two surviving attendants measure 25.8 cm and 24.4 cm. Made with joined-wood construction, lacquer and gold leaf, and carved eyes, the group is finely executed. It originally served as the principal image of the Upper Jogyo Sammaido Hall at Izusan, with Amida surrounded by four bodhisattvas, but two attendants have been lost. The serene Amida is thought to have worn a cylindrical crown over hair gathered high on the head. Preserved as the principal image of Aizome Jizodo from the Meiji period onward, the figures can now be viewed during regular museum hours.
Shuzenji Temple
Buddhist Image Wooden Seated Shaka Nyorai Category Nyorai (Tathagata)
静岡県伊豆市修善寺964
Visiting Status Viewing available at any time
DignityRefinementDepth
A wooden seated Shaka Nyorai is enshrined in Shigetsuden Hall at Shuzenji Temple. Measuring 203.0 cm high, this large Kamakura-period image is made from joined cypress wood and fitted with crystal eyes, and is designated a Shizuoka Prefectural Tangible Cultural Property. Its large spiral curls and the arrangement of the robe, which passes over both shoulders and falls toward the center of the knees, show the influence of Song-dynasty style. The calm modeling, expression, and well-organized drapery suggest a date no later than the end of the Kamakura period. Unusually, the Shaka holds a lotus flower in the right hand in a Zen-style iconography. Shigetsuden is traditionally said to have been donated to Shuzenji by Hojo Masako to pray for the repose of Minamoto no Yoriie, and the image can be viewed in the center of the hall.
Tatehoji Kannon Hall
Buddhist Image Wooden Standing Fudo Myo-o Category Myo-o (Wisdom King)
静岡県静岡市葵区建穂2-12-6
Visiting Status Advance contact required (10:00–15:30 / normally closed to the public)
PowerTense PresenceDignity
A wooden standing Fudo Myoo is enshrined in Tatehoji Kannon Hall. Measuring 78.1 cm high and made from cypress using the split-and-hollowed single-block technique, its taut facial expression and well-balanced proportions indicate a work by a Kei-school sculptor from the latter half of the 13th century. It was transmitted from Tatehoji, once a major temple complex in the Hatori area of Shizuoka, and is now preserved in the local Kannon hall. Designated a Shizuoka Prefectural Tangible Cultural Property, it is regarded as one of the finest surviving Fudo Myoo images in the prefecture. The hall is normally closed, but the prefectural cultural-property information states that viewing is possible from 10:00 to 15:30 with advance contact.
Ichijoji Temple
Buddhist Image Wooden Seated Crowned Amida Nyorai Category Nyorai (Tathagata)
静岡県静岡市清水区庵原町1937
Visiting Status Advance contact required (viewing available at arranged times)
RefinementNobilityPeacefulness
A wooden seated Crowned Amida Nyorai is enshrined on the east side of the principal image in the Main Hall of Ichijoji Temple. Measuring 65.0 cm high, it is an early Kamakura-period sculpture made from joined cypress wood and designated a Shizuoka Prefectural Tangible Cultural Property. A red inscription inside the image shows that it was formerly preserved at Kunoji Temple in Negoya, Shizuoka, and was repaired in 1526. The figure wears its hair in a high topknot with a crown band and a robe covering both shoulders. Its rounded face, stable physique, and carefully carved details give it a refined appearance. Regarded as one of the finest surviving crowned Amida images in the prefecture, it remains worshipped in the Main Hall. Advance contact is required for viewing.
Senkoji Temple
Buddhist Image Wooden Seated Jizo Bosatsu (Enmei Jizo) Category Bosatsu (Bodhisattva)
静岡県磐田市見付1340-1
Visiting Status Viewing available at any time
PeacefulnessWarmthDepth
Senkoji Temple preserves a wooden seated Jizo Bosatsu known as Enmei Jizo. Measuring 140.1 cm high, it is a late-Heian-period Shizuoka Prefectural Tangible Cultural Property made from joined cypress wood, hollowed inside, with carved eyes and coloring. The figure lowers its left leg and holds a jewel and staff. An inscription copied during a 1578 repair preserves a record dated 1160 and is thought to transmit the substance of the original dedicatory inscription. Its large head, broad shoulders, and lively drapery show regional characteristics, making it a valuable late-Heian example whose approximate production date can be established. Shizuoka Prefecture lists it as open to the public with viewing available at any time.
Senkoji Temple
Buddhist Image Wooden Standing Bishamonten Category Tenbu (Deva)
静岡県磐田市見付1340-1
Visiting Status Viewing available at any time
PowerDignitySolemnity
Senkoji Temple preserves a wooden standing Bishamonten, 165.5 cm high, dating to the late Heian period. A Shizuoka Prefectural Tangible Cultural Property, it is made from cypress using the split-and-hollowed single-block technique, with carved eyes, coloring, lacquer, and gold leaf. Clad in armor and standing on a demon, the figure has a comparatively restrained wrathful expression, full facial and bodily modeling, and a relaxed stance characteristic of late-Heian sculpture. Its construction is also important for showing the transition from single-block to joined-wood techniques, while the demon beneath its feet has a distinctive expression of its own. Iwata City highlights the finely rendered armor and surviving vivid coloring shared with the Jizo image. Shizuoka Prefecture lists the statue as open to the public with viewing available at any time.
Kinryuin Temple
Buddhist Image Wooden Standing Thousand-Armed Kannon Bosatsu Category Bosatsu (Bodhisattva)
静岡県伊豆市大平763
Visiting Status Viewing available at any time
MysteryNobilityStillness
Kinryuin Temple preserves a wooden standing Thousand-Armed Kannon Bosatsu. Measuring 109.0 cm high, it is a Heian-period Shizuoka Prefectural Tangible Cultural Property carved from a single block of cypress without hollowing, with carved eyes and an aged surface. The figure follows the standard forty-two-arm form, and its archaic technique extends the single block not only through the head and torso but also to the wrists of the prayer hands and the tips of the hands holding the bowl. Its long narrow eyes, round face, slender waist, and widely spreading lower garment inherit traits of early-Heian Thousand-Armed Kannon Bosatsu images, while the calmer treatment of the drapery suggests a date around the mid-11th century. It is said to have been the principal image of Ryugenji Temple, abolished in 1872, and can now be viewed at Kinryuin.
Kinryuin Temple
Buddhist Image Wooden Seated Fudo Myo-o Category Myo-o (Wisdom King)
静岡県伊豆市大平763
Visiting Status Viewing available at any time
PowerDignityDepth
Kinryuin Temple preserves a wooden seated Fudo Myoo. Measuring 68.5 cm high, it is a Heian-period Shizuoka Prefectural Tangible Cultural Property carved from a single block of cypress with carved eyes and an aged surface. The figure squints its left eye in a wrathful expression and, despite its modest size, has the imposing volume characteristic of single-block sculpture. Its fleshy modeling and drapery are carved simply while retaining a sense of fullness, and the fierce form still conveys a sense of calm and composure. Distinctive details include incised comb-like lines in the hair and cord-like borders along patterned bands near the knees. The image is dated to around the mid-11th century and can now be viewed at Kinryuin.
Hojoji Temple
Buddhist Image Wooden Seated Amida Nyorai Category Nyorai (Tathagata)
静岡県伊豆の国市南江間862-1
Visiting Status Advance contact required (9:00–17:00 / telephone reservation required for viewing)
RefinementNobilityStillness
Hojoji Temple preserves a wooden seated Amida Nyorai. Measuring 66.7 cm high, it is a Kamakura-period Shizuoka Prefectural Tangible Cultural Property made from joined cypress wood, fitted with crystal eyes, and now retaining an aged surface. The spiral curls, cranial jewel, urna, earlobes, and three neck folds are carefully rendered, and the figure sits in robes with the meditation mudra. Even the folds on the back are carved with close realism, giving the image a well-integrated form. The Izunokuni tourism association introduces Hojoji as a temple where Hojo Yoshitoki is said to have commissioned a Kei-school sculptor to make the principal image, and tourism information updated in 2026 describes this Amida as a Kei-school work requiring a telephone reservation for viewing. Shizuoka Prefecture also lists it as open to the public from 9:00 to 17:00 with advance contact.
Sairakuji Temple
Buddhist Image Wooden Seated Yakushi Nyorai Category Nyorai (Tathagata)
静岡県袋井市春岡384
Visiting Status Advance contact required (viewing available at arranged times)
GentlenessPeacefulnessStillness
Sairakuji Temple preserves a wooden seated Yakushi Nyorai, approximately 84 cm high. A late-Heian-period Shizuoka Prefectural Tangible Cultural Property, it is made from cypress using the split-and-hollowed single-block technique and retains traces of its original coloring despite extensive loss. The left hand supports a medicine jar and the right is raised with the palm facing forward in the standard Yakushi form. Its gentle, prayerful expression is especially noted, preserving the calm character of late-Heian Buddhist sculpture. The image continues the devotional tradition of the ancient Sairakuji Temple. Shizuoka Prefecture lists it as open to the public with advance contact required.
Sairakuji Temple
Buddhist Image Wooden Seated Amida Nyorai with Two Attendants Category Nyorai (Tathagata)
静岡県袋井市春岡384
Visiting Status Advance contact required (viewing available at arranged times)
GentlenessRefinementSolemnity
Sairakuji Temple preserves a wooden seated Amida Nyorai with two attendants. Made from cypress using the split-and-hollowed single-block technique and fitted with crystal eyes, the group is a Shizuoka Prefectural Tangible Cultural Property showing characteristics of the late Heian period. The central Amida is 53.9 cm high and forms the raigo mudra; Kannon Bosatsu presents a lotus seat for the deceased, while Seishi Bosatsu kneels holding the stem of a red lotus. The triad combines established older conventions with the newer technique of crystal eyes. An inscription inside the central image records a repair in 1290, undertaken at the request of the monk Chudo by the Buddhist sculptor Ninsho and the lacquer artisan Ganbutsu. Shizuoka Prefecture lists the group as open to the public with advance contact required.