List of National Treasures of Japan (paintings)
The term "National Treasure" has been used in Japan to denote cultural properties since 1897.
The definition and the criteria have changed since the inception of the term. These paintings adhere to the current definition, and were designated national treasures when the Law for the Protection of Cultural Properties was implemented on June 9, 1951. As such, they are restricted in transfer and may not be exported. Owners are required to announce any changes to the National Treasures such as damage or loss and need to obtain a permit for changes in location, transfer of ownership or intended repairs. The items are selected by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology based on their "especially high historical or artistic value". This list contains 162 paintings from 7th-century Asuka period to the early modern 19th-century Edo period. In fact the number of paintings presented is more than 162, because in some cases groups of related paintings are combined to form a single entry. The paintings listed show Buddhist themes, landscapes, portraits and court scenes. Some of the paintings were imported directly from China. The titles of the works are descriptive rather than the artists' titles; therefore it is possible to find alternate names in the literature for a given work.
Beginning in the mid-6th century, as Buddhism was brought to Japan from Baekje, religious art was introduced from the mainland. The earliest religious paintings in Japan were copied using mainland styles and techniques, and are similar to the art of the Chinese Sui dynasty or the late Sixteen Kingdoms around the early 5th century. They comprise the oldest extant non-primitive paintings in Japan. By the mid-Nara period Japanese paintings showed influences of the Chinese Tang dynasty and in the 9th century early Heian period evolved into the Kara-e genre. Wall murals in the Takamatsuzuka Tomb, the Kitora Tomb and the Portrait of Kichijōten at Yakushi-ji exemplify the Kara-e style. Generally, Nara period paintings show religious subjects, and the artists are unknown. During that period, sculptures rather than paintings were more prevalent.
Mandalas became predominant in the paintings of the early Heian period as esoteric Buddhism emerged with the Shingon and Tendai sects in the 8th and 9th centuries. The evolution of Pure Land Buddhism caused raigō-zu to be developed as a genre, characterised by depictions of the Amida welcoming the souls of the faithful to his Western Paradise as seen in a 1053 painting in the Phoenix-Hall of Byōdō-in. By the mid-Heian period, Chinese style kara-e painting was replaced with the classical Japanese yamato-e style, in which the images were painted primarily on sliding screens and byōbu folding screens. At the close of the Heian period around 1185, the practice of adorning emakimono hand scrolls with yamato-e paintings flourished. Examples of illustrated hand scrolls include novels such as Genji Monogatari Emaki, historical writings like The Tale of Great Minister Ban, or religious works such as the Scroll of Hungry Ghosts. These genres continued to be produced into the Kamakura period from 1185 to 1333. As during the Nara period, sculpture remained the preferred art form of the period.
Influenced by the Chinese Song and Yuan dynasties, Japanese monochrome ink painting called suibokuga largely replaced polychrome scroll paintings. By the end of the 14th century, monochrome landscape paintings became the preferred genre for Zen painters, evolving to a unique Japanese style from the Chinese origin. Shūbun, who created Reading in a Bamboo Grove, and his student Sesshū, author of Landscape of the Four Seasons, are the most well known priest-painters of the period. As with most of the early Japanese paintings, these works were created for Buddhist temples. At the end of the Muromachi period around 1573, ink painting had migrated out of the Zen monasteries, and was practised by artists from the Kanō school.
In contrast to the previous period, the paintings of the Momoyama period were characterised by a grandiose polychrome style with extensive use of gold and silver foil. Large scale paintings were commissioned to adorn the castles and palaces of the military rulers. The Kanō school, patronized by the ruling class, was the most influential school of the period and, with 300 years of dominance, endured for the longest period in the history of Japanese painting.
The trends of large polychrome paintings continued into the Edo period. The Rinpa school, best represented by Tawaraya Sōtatsu and Ogata Kōrin, used vibrant colors to depict classical themes from Japanese literature and Heian period poetry. In the 18th century, paintings of Yuan dynasty scholar-amateur painters were brought to Japan and imitated, giving rise to the Nanga or Bunjinga style of painting. Two of the most prominent painters of this school were Ike no Taiga and Yosa Buson.
Statistics
The 162 entries in the list consist of the following: 91 are hanging scrolls; 38 are hand scrolls or emakimono; 23 are byōbu folding screens or paintings on fusuma sliding doors; five are murals; and three are albums. Two items, the portrait of Kichijōten and Illustrated Biography of Prince Shōtoku do not fall in any of these categories. The paintings are located in museums, Buddhist temples, Shinto shrines, private collections, a university and two are located in tombs. A large proportion of items are housed in the national museums of Tokyo, Kyoto and Nara. The city containing the greatest number of National Treasure paintings is Kyoto with 51, followed by Tokyo with 47 of which 28 are located in the Tokyo National Museum which is the structure housing the most painting National Treasures.| Prefecture | City | National Treasures |
| Aichi | Nagoya | 1 |
| Aichi | Tokoname | 1 |
| Fukuoka | Dazaifu | 1 |
| Fukuoka | Kurume | 1 |
| Hiroshima | Hatsukaichi | 1 |
| Hiroshima | Onomichi | 1 |
| Hyōgo | Kasai | 1 |
| Hyōgo | Kobe | 1 |
| Iwate | Hiraizumi | 1 |
| Kanagawa | Fujisawa | 1 |
| Kanagawa | Kamakura | 4 |
| Kanagawa | Yokohama | 1 |
| Kyoto | Kyoto | 51 |
| Kyoto | Uji | 1 |
| Kyoto | Maizuru | 1 |
| Nara | Asuka | 2 |
| Nara | Heguri | 1 |
| Nara | Nara | 15 |
| Nara | Uda | 1 |
| Okayama | Kurashiki | 2 |
| Osaka | Kawachinagano | 1 |
| Osaka | Osaka | 5 |
| Osaka | Shimamoto | 1 |
| Shiga | Hikone | 1 |
| Shiga | Ōtsu | 3 |
| Shizuoka | Atami | 1 |
| Tokyo | Tokyo | 47 |
| Tottori | Chizu | 1 |
| Wakayama | Kinokawa | 1 |
| Wakayama | Mount Kōya | 8 |
| Yamagata | Yonezawa | 1 |
| Yamaguchi | Hōfu | 1 |
| Yamanashi | Kōshū | 1 |
| Yamanashi | Minobu | 1 |
| Period | National Treasures |
| Tang dynasty | 1 |
| Asuka period | 1 |
| Nara period | 5 |
| Heian period | 52 |
| Northern Song | 3 |
| Southern Song | 17 |
| Kamakura period | 41 |
| Nanboku-chō period | 3 |
| Yuan dynasty | 6 |
| Muromachi period | 15 |
| Momoyama period | 6 |
| Edo period | 16 |
Usage
An overview of what is included in the table and the manner of sorting is as follows: the columns are sortable by pressing the arrows symbols.- Name: the name as registered in the Database of National Cultural Properties
- Author: the name of the artist and—if applicable—name of the person who added an inscription
- Remarks: detailed location, provenance, general remarks
- Date: period and year; The column entries sort by year. If only a period is known, they sort by the start year of that period.
- Format: primary type of painting, technique and dimensions; The column entries sort by the main type and in some cases further by subcategories: album; byōbu ; hand scroll ; hanging scroll ; mural; other.
- Present location: "building-name temple/museum/shrine-name town-name prefecture-name"; The column entries sort as "prefecture-name town-name temple/museum/shrine-name building-name".
- Image: picture of the painting, or of a characteristic painting in a group of paintings
Treasures
| Name | Author | Remarks | Date | Format | Present location | Image |
| Buddhist Paradise with Golden Pagoda | — | — | Heian period | Ten hanging scrolls, gold paint on indigo blue paper, | Chūson-ji, Hiraizumi, Iwate | |
| Scenes in and around the capital | Kanō Eitoku | — | Momoyama period, not later than 1574 | One pair of six-section folding screens, ink and color on paper with gold leaf background, | Yonezawa City Uesugi Museum, Yonezawa, Yamagata | |
| Illustrated Biography of Prince Shōtoku | Hata no Chitei | Originally on fixed doors at Hōryū-ji, later during the Edo period on freestanding screens and in recent times remounted on panels | Heian period, 1069 | Ten panels, color on figured silk, 189.2–190.5 cm x 137.2–148.2 cm | Tokyo National Museum, Tokyo | |
| Portrait of Takami Senseki | Watanabe Kazan | — | Edo period, 1837 | Hanging scroll, light color on silk, | Tokyo National Museum, Tokyo | |
| Illustrated Biography of the Priest Ippen： Volume 7 | En'i | Also known as Ippen Hijiri-e | Kamakura period, 1299 | Hand scroll, color on silk, | Tokyo National Museum, Tokyo | |
| Kokūzō Bosatsu | — | Formerly owned by Mitsui Gomei Co. | Heian period, 12th century | Hanging scroll, color on silk, | Tokyo National Museum, Tokyo | |
| Kujaku Myoo | — | Formerly owned by the Hara family. | Heian period, 12th century | Hanging scroll, color on silk, | Tokyo National Museum, Tokyo | |
| Red and white hibiscuses | Li Di | — | Southern Song dynasty, 1197 | Set of two hanging scrolls, color on silk, each | Tokyo National Museum, Tokyo | |
| Sixteen Arhats | — | Formerly owned by the Shōjuraigō-ji temple. | Heian period, 11th century | Set of 16 hanging scrolls, color on silk, 95.9–97.2 cm x 57.8–52.2 cm | Tokyo National Museum, Tokyo | |
| Senju Kannon | — | Formerly owned by the Kawasaki family. | Heian period, 12th century | Hanging scroll, color on silk, | Tokyo National Museum, Tokyo | |
| Scenes in and around Kyoto | Iwasa Katsumochi | Known as Funaki version after the Funaki family in whose possession it was handed down | Edo period, 17th century | One pair of six-section folding screens, ink and color on paper with gold leaf background, each | Tokyo National Museum, Tokyo | |
| Pigeon on a peach branch | Emperor Huizong of Song | — | Northern Song dynasty, 1108 or 1109 | Hanging scroll, color on silk, | private, Tokyo | |
| Nachi Falls | — | — | Kamakura period, 13th–14th century | Hanging scroll, color on silk, | Nezu Art Museum, Tokyo | |
| Fugen Bosatsu | — | — | Heian period, 12th century | Hanging scroll, color on silk, | Tokyo National Museum, Tokyo | |
| Apple Blossoms | Attributed to | Hanging scroll, color on silk, | Hatakeyama Memorial Museum of Fine Art, Tokyo | |||
| Quail | Attributed to Li An-Zhong | Marked with the zakkeshitsu-in seal found on Chinese paintings imported to Japan by the Ashikaga | Southern Song dynasty, 12th–13th century | Hanging scroll, color on silk, | Nezu Art Museum, Tokyo | |
| Sakyamuni descending the mountain after asceticism Snowy Landscape Snowy Landscape purportedly by Liang Kai | Liang Kai | "III" was cut later to make the three paintings into a triad likely during the time of Ashikaga Yoshimitsu. Passed down from the Ashikaga shogunate as part of the Higashiyama Treasure. Marked with the zakkeshitsu-in seal found on Chinese paintings imported to Japan by the Ashikaga. Originally designated as three distinct National Treasures, they came to be designated as a single National Treasure in 2007. | Southern Song dynasty, 13th century | Three hanging scrolls, ink and light color on silk, , , | Tokyo National Museum, Tokyo | |
| Wind and Rain, landscape painting | Attributed to Ma Yuan | — | Southern Song dynasty, 13th century | Hanging scroll, ink on silk, | Seikadō Bunko Art Museum, Tokyo | |
| Irises screen | Ogata Kōrin | Formerly held by the Nishi Honganji, Kyoto. | Edo period, c. 1705 | One pair of six-section folding screens, ink and color on paper with gold leaf background, each | Nezu Art Museum, Tokyo | |
| Painting of the chapters Sekiya and Miotsukushi from The Tale of Genji | Tawaraya Sōtatsu | — | Edo period | One pair of six-section folding screens, ink and color on paper with gold leaf background, each | Seikadō Bunko Art Museum, Tokyo | |
| Cypress Trees screen | Kanō Eitoku | — | Momoyama period | Eight-section folding screen, ink and color on paper with gold leaf background, | Tokyo National Museum, Tokyo | |
| Chinese landscape | Ike no Taiga | — | Edo period, 18th century | One pair of six-section folding screens, ink and color on paper with gold leaf background, | Tokyo National Museum, Tokyo | |
| Imperial Guard Cavalry | attributed to Fujiwara Nobuzane | — | Kamakura period, 1247 | Hand scroll, light color on paper, | Okura Museum of Art, Tokyo | |
| Pine trees in snow | Maruyama Ōkyo | — | Edo period, 1773 | One pair of six-section folding screens, light color on paper, | Mitsui Memorial Museum, Tokyo | |
| Family enjoying the evening cool | Kusumi Morikage | — | Edo period, 17th century | A two-section folding screen, light color on paper, | Tokyo National Museum, Tokyo | |
| Merry-making under aronia blossoms | Kanō Naganobu | The two middle sections of the right screen were destroyed by fire in the 1923 Great Kantō earthquake. | Momoyama period, 17th century | One pair of six-section folding screens, color on paper, | Tokyo National Museum, Tokyo | |
| Scroll of hungry ghosts | — | — | Heian period, 12th century | Hand scroll, color on paper, | Tokyo National Museum, Tokyo | |
| Illustrated Sutra of Cause and Effect | — | — | Nara period, second half of 8th century | Hand scroll, color on paper, | Tokyo University of the Arts, Tokyo | |
| Maple viewers | Kanō Hideyori | — | Muromachi period, 16th century | A six-section folding screen, color on paper, | Tokyo National Museum, Tokyo | |
| Genji Monogatari Emaki or The Tale of Genji Scroll | — | Oldest surviving monogatari scroll and oldest non-Buddhist scroll covering chapters 38, 39 and 40 of the novel. | Heian period, early 12th century | Hand scroll cut into four illustrations and nine pages of text, color on paper, 21.8 cm x cm | Gotoh Museum, Tokyo | |
| Murasaki Shikibu Diary Emaki | attributed to Fujiwara Nobuzane and Kujō Yoshitsune | — | Kamakura period, 13th century | Hand scroll cut into three illustrations and three pages of text, color on paper, 21.0 cm x cm | Gotoh Museum, Tokyo | |
| Fan-paper album of, 12th century | Fan paper in folding book form, 22 pages, color on paper, length 25.5 cm, length of upper chord 26.2 cm | Tokyo National Museum, Tokyo | ||||
| , late 12th century | Hand scroll, color on paper, | Tokyo National Museum, Tokyo | ||||
| Ban Dainagon Ekotoba | Tokiwa Mitsunaga of the Tosa school | — | Kamakura period, late 12th century | Hand scroll, color on paper, | Idemitsu Museum of Arts, Tokyo | |
| — | Kamakura period, 13th century | Hand scroll, color on paper, | Tokyo National Museum, Tokyo | |||
| Evening bell from mist-shrouded temple | attributed to Muqi Fachang | The scene depicted is one of the Eight Views of Xiaoxiang. | Southern Song dynasty | Hanging scroll, ink on paper, | Hatakeyama Memorial Museum of Fine Art, Tokyo | |
| Portrait of Kanzan | Kaō Ninga | — | Nanboku-chō period, 14th century | Hanging scroll, ink on paper, | private collection, Tokyo | |
| Fishing village in the evening glow | attributed to Muqi Fachang | The scene depicted is one of the Eight Views of Xiaoxiang. | Southern Song dynasty, 13th century | Hanging scroll, ink on paper, | Nezu Art Museum, Tokyo | |
| Landscape or Landscape with ink broken | Sesshū Tōyō | With inscriptions by the artist and six poet-monks from Gozan Zen temples in Kyoto | Muromachi period, 1495 | Hanging scroll, splashed ink on paper, | Tokyo National Museum, Tokyo | |
| Landscapes of autumn and winter | Sesshū Tōyō | — | Muromachi period, 15th century | Two hanging scrolls, ink on paper, | Tokyo National Museum, Tokyo | |
| Pine Trees also known as the Pine Trees screen | Hasegawa Tōhaku | — | Momoyama period, 16th century | One pair of six-section folding screens, ink on paper, each | Tokyo National Museum, Tokyo | |
| Detached segment of the Deeds of the Zen Masters:, 14th century | Hand scroll, ink on paper, | Tokyo National Museum, Tokyo | ||||
| Detached segment of the Deeds of the Zen Masters: Tanka burning Buddhist statues | Indara | — | Yuan dynasty, 14th century | Hand scroll, ink on paper, | Ishibashi Museum of Art, Kurume, Fukuoka | |
| Detached segment of the Deeds of the Zen Masters: Priest Zhichang and courtier Libo | Indara | — | Yuan dynasty, 14th century | Hand scroll, ink on paper, | Hatakeyama Memorial Museum of Fine Art, Tokyo | |
| Detached segment of the Deeds of the Zen Masters: Priest Zhichang | Indara | — | Yuan dynasty, 14th century | Hand scroll, ink on paper, | Seikadō Bunko Art Museum, Tokyo | |
| Detached segment of the Deeds of the Zen Masters: Budai | — | Yuan dynasty, 14th century | Hand scroll, ink on paper, | Nezu Art Museum, Tokyo | ||
| Zhou Maoshu Appreciating Lotuses | Kanō Masanobu | — | Muromachi period, 15th century | Hanging scroll, ink and light color on paper, | Kyushu National Museum, Dazaifu, Fukuoka | |
| Reading in a Bamboo Grove | attributed to Tenshō Shūbun, inscription by Jikuun Tōren and other priests | — | Muromachi period, 1446 | Hanging scroll, ink and light color on paper, | Tokyo National Museum, Tokyo | |
| The Sixth Patriarch Dajian Huineng | Zhiweng | — | Southern Song dynasty, 13th century | Hanging scroll, ink on paper, | Daitōkyū Memorial Library, Tokyo | |
| Imaginary tour through Xiao-xiang | Li | — | Southern Song dynasty, 12th century | Scroll, ink on paper, | Tokyo National Museum, Tokyo | |
| Rishukyō sutra | — | Sutra scroll decorated with line under drawings. This work is the first volume of the four volume Konkōmyōkyō Sutra. Volume 3, a National Treasure, is also preserved complete while volumes 2 and 4 only exist in fragments. | Kamakura period, 1193 | Scroll, hakubyō-style on paper, | Daitōkyū Memorial Library, Tokyo | |
| Portrait of Lanxi Daolong | Inscription on the upper part of the scroll is by the subject of the portrait, Lanxi Daolong. | — | Kamakura period, 1271 | Hanging scroll, light color on silk, | Kamakura Museum of National Treasures, Kamakura, Kanagawa. Owned by Kenchō-ji, Kamakura, Kanagawa | |
| Illustrated Biography of the Priest Ippen | En'i | — | Kamakura period, 1299 | Hand scroll, color on silk, twelve scrolls, , | Shōjōkō-ji, Fujisawa, Kanagawa | |
| Portraits of Kanezawa Sanetoki, Hōjō Akitoki, Kanezawa Sadaaki, Kanezawa Sadayuki | — | Four portraits of members of the Hōjō clan. | Kamakura period | Four hanging scrolls, color on silk, | Shōmyō-ji, Yokohama, Kanagawa | |
| Ten Advantages and Ten Pleasures of Country Life and or Album of the Ten Expediencies and the Ten Merits | Ike no Taiga and Yosa Buson | — | Edo period, 1771 | Album composed of 10 paintings by Buson and 10 paintings by Taiga, light color on paper, | Kawabata Memorial Hall, Kamakura, Kanagawa | |
| Taima Mandala engi | — | — | Kamakura period | Two hand scrolls, color on paper, and | Kamakura Museum of National Treasures, Kamakura, Kanagawa. Owner: Kōmyō-ji, Kamakura, Kanagawa | |
| Snow Sifted Through Frozen Clouds | Uragami Gyokudō | — | Edo period, early 19th century | Hanging scroll, ink on paper, | Kawabata Memorial Hall, Kamakura, Kanagawa | |
| Summer Mountain | attributed to Hu Zhifu | — | Southern Song dynasty, 13th century | Hanging scroll, color on silk, | Kuon-ji, Minobu, Yamanashi | |
| — | Kamakura period, 1260s | Hanging scroll, ink on paper, | Kogaku-ji, Kōshū, Yamanashi | |||
| , October 10, 1088, June 1, 1090 | Five hanging scrolls, color on silk, and | Nara National Museum, Nara, Nara. Owned by Kiburi-ji, Ōno, Gifu | ||||
| Red and White Plum Blossoms | Ogata Kōrin | — | Edo period, 18th century | One pair of two-section folding screens, ink and color on paper, each | MOA Museum of Art, Atami, Shizuoka. | |
| Genji Monogatari Emaki or The Tale of Genji Scroll | — | — | Heian period, early 12th century | Hand scroll with 15 illustrations and 38 pages of text, color on paper | Tokugawa Art Museum, Nagoya, Aichi | |
| Dazu Huike | Sesshū Tōyō | — | Muromachi period, 1496 | Hanging scroll, ink and light color on paper, | Sainen-ji, Tokoname, Aichi | |
| Fudō Myōō | — | — | Heian period | Hanging scroll, color on silk, | Mii-dera, Ōtsu, Shiga | |
| The, 13th century | 15 scrolls, color on silk, | Shōju Raigō-ji, Ōtsu, Shiga | ||||
| Genre scene or Hikone Screen | — | Formerly held by the Ii family | Edo period, first half of 17th century | Six-section folding screen, color on paper with gold leaf background, | Hikone Castle Museum, Hikone, Shiga | |
| The Five Abhisambodhi | unknown | Brought to Japan from China by Enchin. | Heian period ; late Tang dynasty, 9th century | Two hand scrolls with iconographic line drawings, one complete and one with part of the first half missing, ink on paper, | Mii-dera, Ōtsu, Shiga | |
| Raigo of Amida and Twenty-five Attendants | — | — | Kamakura period, 13th–14th century | Hanging scroll, color on silk, | Chion-in, Kyoto | |
| Five hanging scrolls, color on silk, | Daigo-ji, Kyoto | |||||
| Five hanging scrolls, color on silk, | Tō-ji, Kyoto | |||||
| Peacock Myōō | — | — | Northern Song dynasty, 11th century | Hanging scroll, color on silk, | Ninna-ji, Kyoto | |
| Amida coming over the Mountain | — | — | Kamakura period, 13th century | Hanging scroll, color on silk, | Kyoto National Museum, Kyoto | |
| Descent of Amitabha over the Mountain | — | — | Kamakura period, 13th century | Hanging scroll, color on silk, | Eikan-dō Zenrin-ji, Kyoto | |
| Landscape screen | — | — | early Kamakura period, 13th century | Six-section folding screen, color on silk, | Jingo-ji, Kyoto | |
| Landscape screen | — | Only extant screen painting from the Heian period. Formerly at Tō-ji | Heian period, 11th century | Six-section folding screen, color on silk, | Kyoto National Museum, Kyoto | |
| Shaka rising from the Gold Coffin | — | — | late Heian period, 11th century | Hanging scroll, color on silk, | Kyoto National Museum, Kyoto | |
| , 12th century | Hanging scroll, color on silk, | Jingo-ji, Kyoto | ||||
| Autumn and Winter Landscapes | attributed to Emperor Huizong of Song | — | Southern Song dynasty, 12th century | Two hanging scrolls, color on silk, each | Konchi-in, Kyoto | |
| Oxen | attributed to Yan Ciping | — | Southern Song dynasty, late 12th century | Hanging scroll, color on silk, | Sen-oku Hakuko Kan, Kyoto | |
| Twelve Devas | — | Formerly owned by Tō-ji. | late Heian period, 1127 | Twelve hanging scrolls, color on silk, each | Kyoto National Museum, Kyoto | |
| Twelve Devas screen | attributed to Takuma Shōga | — | late Heian period, 1191 | Pair of six-section folding screens, color on paper, each | Tō-ji, Kyoto | |
| Sixteen Arhats | — | — | Northern Song dynasty, 12th century | 16 hanging scrolls, color on silk, | Seiryō-ji, Kyoto | |
| Portrait of Daitō Kokushi | — | — | Nanboku-chō period, 1334 | Hanging scroll, color on silk, | Daitoku-ji, Kyoto | |
| Three portraits in Jingo-ji said to be those of Minamoto no Yoritomo, Taira no Shigemori, Fujiwara no Mitsuyoshi | attributed to Fujiwara Takanobu | — | Kamakura period, 13th century | Three hanging scrolls, color on silk, , and | Jingo-ji, Kyoto | |
| Fudō Myōō | — | — | Heian period, 12th century | Hanging scroll, color on silk, | Manshu-in, Kyoto | |
| Fudō Myōō and two attendants | — | — | Heian period, mid 11th century | Hanging scroll, color on silk, | Shōren-in, Kyoto | |
| Fugen Enmei | — | — | Heian period, 12th century | Hanging scroll, color on silk, | Matsunoo-dera, Maizuru, Kyoto | |
| Butsugen Butsumo | — | — | early Kamakura period, end of 12th century | Hanging scroll, color on silk, | Kōzan-ji, Kyoto | |
| Hanging scroll, color on silk, | Daigo-ji, Kyoto | |||||
| Portrait of Wuzhun Shifan | unknown | Wuzhun Shifan was a Chinese zen priest. | Southern Song dynasty, 1238 | Hanging scroll, color on silk, | Tōfuku-ji, Kyoto | |
| The monk Myōe | — | — | Kamakura period, 13th century | Hanging scroll, color on silk, | Kōzan-ji, Kyoto | |
| Mandala of the Two Realms or Den shingon-in mandala | — | — | Heian period, 9th century | Two hanging scrolls, color on silk, and | Tō-ji, Kyoto | |
| Portraits of Seven Shingon Patriarchs | inscriptions attributed to Kūkai and possibly Emperor Saga | Five portraits were brought back by Kūkai from his trip to Tang dynasty China in 805. Two portraits were added later, in 821, in Japan. | Tang dynasty and Heian period | Seven hanging scrolls, color on silk | Tō-ji, Kyoto | |
| Hanging scroll, color on silk, | Daigo-ji, Kyoto | |||||
| Enmaten | — | — | Kamakura period, 12th century | Hanging scroll, color on silk, | Daigo-ji, Kyoto | |
| Landscape | Ri Tō | — | Southern Song dynasty | Two hanging scrolls, ink on silk, | Kōtō-in, Kyoto | |
| Guanyin, Monkeys, and Crane | Muqi Fachang | — | Southern Song dynasty, 13th century | Three hanging scrolls, ink and light color on silk, , | Daitoku-ji, Kyoto | |
| Paintings in five-storied pagoda | — | The paintings covered every interior surface of the first floor of the pagoda. About half of the original paintings remain. They are located on pillars, window shutters, doors, wainscoting and so on. Motifs include deities from the Mandala of the Two Realms and portraits of seven of the eight Shingon patriarchs. | Heian period, 951 | Paintings, 18 panels, ink, color and gold on wood | first floor of five-storied pagoda, Daigo-ji, Kyoto | |
| Pine tree and flowering plants | Hasegawa Tōhaku | — | Momoyama period | One pair of two-section folding screens, ink and color on paper with gold leaf background, each | Chishaku-in, Kyoto | |
| Pictures on room partitions: Pine tree and flowering plants, Cherry and maple trees, Pine and plum trees, Pine tree, and his son | Paintings on walls and sliding doors of the Great drawing room of Chishaku-in. four paintings on alcove and two paintings on wall, nine paintings on wall and two paintings on fusuma, four paintings on fusuma, four paintings on alcove. | Momoyama period | Paintings, ink and color on paper with gold leaf background | Chishaku-in, Kyoto | ||
| Wind god and Thunder God | Tawaraya Sōtatsu | Replicated in works by Sakai Hōitsu and Ogata Kōrin. | Edo period, 17th century | One pair of two-section folding screens, ink and color on paper with gold leaf background, each | Kennin-ji, Kyoto | |
| Portrait of Emperor Hanazono | Gōshin | — | Nanboku-chō period, 1338 | Hanging scroll, color on paper, | Chōfuku-ji, Kyoto | |
| History of the Kegon Sect or | — | — | Kamakura period, 13th century | Six hand scrolls, color on paper, each width: 31.5 cm, lengths of vol. 1/2/3/4/5/6: 1583.0/1219.0/154.5/1420.0/1531.0/865.0 cm | Kōzan-ji, Kyoto | |
| Scroll of, late 12th century | Hand scroll, color on paper, | Kyoto National Museum, Kyoto | ||||
| Illustrated Sutra of Cause and Effect | — | — | Nara period, 8th century | Hand scroll, color on paper, | Jōban Rendai-ji, Kyoto | |
| Illustrated Sutra of Cause and Effect | — | — | Nara period, 8th century | Hand scroll, color on paper, | Hōon-in, Daigo-ji, Kyoto | |
| Diseases and Deformities | — | — | late Heian period, 12th century | Hand scroll cut into 10 sections, color on paper, cm x cm | Kyoto National Museum, Kyoto | |
| The illustrated biography of priest Hōnen | — | — | Kamakura period, 14th century | Hand scroll, illustrated biographies of famous priests, 48 volumes, color on paper, ca. | Chion-in, Kyoto | |
| History of Kitano Tenjin | — | Biography and catalogue of miracles performed by Sugawara no Michizane, the founder of Kitano Tenman-gū. | Kamakura period, 1219 | Eight large hand scrolls, color on paper, 52.2 cm x cm | Kitano Tenman-gū, Kyoto | |
| Landscape: Keiin shōchiku or Cottage by a mountain stream | attributed to Kichizan Minchō with inscriptions by Taihaku Shingen and other priests | — | Muromachi period, 1413 | Hanging scroll, ink on paper, | Konchi-in, Kyoto | |
| Portrait of Shinran or Mirror portrait | — | Standing portrait of the founder of the Jodo Shinshu school of Pure Land Buddhism. | Kamakura period, possibly the last year of Shinran's life | Hanging scroll, ink on paper, | Nishi Honganji, Kyoto | |
| View of Amanohashidate | Sesshū Tōyō | Bird's eye view of Amanohashidate. | Muromachi period, 1501–1506 | Hanging scroll, ink and light color on paper, | Kyoto National Museum, Kyoto | |
| Catching cat-fish with a gourd | Josetsu | Commissioned by shōgun Ashikaga Yoshimochi. On the top of the scroll there is an inscription by Gyokuen Bunpō and 30 other priests. | 1413Muromachi period, 1413 | Hanging scroll, ink and light color on paper, | Taizō-in, Kyoto | |
| Credited as the oldest work of manga. | Heian period and Kamakura period, mid 12th century, 13th century | Four hand scrolls, ink on paper, up to | Kyoto National Museum and Tokyo National Museum, owned by Kōzan-ji, Kyoto | |||
| Water fowl in the lotus pond | Tawaraya Sōtatsu | — | Edo period, early 17th century | Hanging scroll, ink on paper, | Kyoto National Museum, Kyoto | |
| Mandala of the Two Realms or Takao mandala | — | Oldest extant example of a Mandala of the Two Worlds in Japan, believed to be a faithful copy of the mandalas that Kūkai brought from Japan | Heian period, 829–833 | Two hanging scrolls, gold and silver on dark bluish purple damask, , | Jingo-ji, Kyoto | |
| Konkōmyōkyō Sutra vol. 3 | — | Sutra scroll decorated with line under drawings possibly showing the Tale of Genji or "Parting at dawn". Together with the Rishukyō sutra this work is part of the four volume Konkōmyōkyō Sutra. Volumes 2 and 4 only exist in fragments. | Kamakura period, 1192 | Hand scroll, color on paper, hakubyō-style, | Kyoto National Museum, Kyoto | |
| Paintings on room partitions in the abbot's quarters : Birds and flowers of the four seasons, Four Accomplishment or Four elegant pastimes: Music, Go, Calligraphy and Painting, Eight Views of Xiaoxiang, | Kanō Eitoku and his father Kanō Shōei | — | Muromachi period, 16th century | 38 paintings on fusuma and wall panels of the abbot's quarters at Jukō-in, sub-temple of Daitoku-ji. 16 panels on fusuma in ritual room, ink on paper eight panels on fusuma in upper second room, ink and light color on paper eight panels on fusuma in lower second room, ink on paper two panels on wall, four panels on fusuma in upper first room, ink on paper | Jukō-in, Kyoto | |
| Three hanging scrolls, colors on silk; Amida:, Kannon:, Seishi:, | Kyoto National Museum, Kyoto. Owner: Shōjōke-in, Kyoto | |||||
| Paintings in the Phoenix Hall: The nine possible levels of birth into, 1053 | 14 paintings, color on wood: eight former door paintings and three murals, two door paintings, one painting on the wall behind the principal image of Buddha | Phoenix Hall, Uji, Kyoto | ||||
| Divinely inspired Reception of the Two Great Sutras: , | attributed to Fujiwara no Munehiro | — | Heian period, 1136 | Two hanging scrolls, color on silk, | Fujita Art Museum, Osaka | |
| Illustrated hand scroll of the Monk Zuanzang | Fujiwara Takaaki | — | Kamakura period, 12th century | Twelve hand scrolls, color on p aper, 40.3 cm x cm | Fujita Art Museum, Osaka | |
| Landscape of the four seasons | — | — | Muromachi period, mid-16th century | One pair of six-section folding screens, ink and color on paper with gold leaf background, | Kongō-ji, Kawachinagano, Osaka | |
| Portrait of Emperor Go-Toba | attributed to Fujiwara Nobuzane | — | Kamakura period, 1221 | Hanging scroll, color on paper, | Minase Shrine, Shimamoto, Osaka | |
| Murasaki Shikibu Diary Ekotoba | unknown | — | Kamakura period, 13th century | Hand scroll, color on paper, | Fujita Art Museum, Osaka | |
| Fan-paper album of Hokekyō Sutra | — | — | Heian period, 12th century | Fan paper in folding book form, 98 pages, color on paper, height: 25.6 cm, width: 49.4 cm or 19.0 cm | Shitennō-ji, Osaka | |
| New Moon over the brushwood gate | — | At the top of the scroll there is a collection of poetry and prose by 18 zen priests. | Muromachi period, 1405 | Hanging scroll, ink on paper, | Fujita Art Museum, Osaka | |
| Prince Shōtoku with eminent Tendai Priests | — | — | Heian period | Ten hanging scrolls, color on silk | Ichijō-ji, Kasai, Hyōgo | |
| Snowclad houses in the night | Yosa Buson | — | Edo period, around 1778 | Hanging scroll, ink and light color on paper, | private, Kobe, Hyōgo | |
| Amida Triad with a boy attendant | — | — | Kamakura period, 12th–13th century | Three hanging scrolls, color on silk, , , | Hokke-ji, Nara, Nara | |
| Ox and herdboys or Riding on an ox | Li Di | — | Southern Song dynasty, second half of 12th century | Hanging scroll, color on silk, | Yamato Bunkakan, Nara, Nara | |
| , 12th century | Hanging scroll, color on silk, | Tōdai-ji, Nara, Nara | ||||
| Portrait of the priest Jion Daishi | — | — | Heian period, 11th century | Hanging scroll, color on silk, | Yakushi-ji, Nara, Nara | |
| Jūichimen Kannon | — | Handed down in Hokki-ji | Heian period, 12th century | Hanging scroll, color on silk, | Nara National Museum, Nara, Nara | |
| Twelve Deities | — | — | Heian period | Twelve hanging scrolls, color on silk, | Saidai-ji, Nara, Nara | |
| Frescoes in the Kitora Tomb | — | Depicted are the Four Symbols on the corresponding walls of the burial chamber, animals of the Chinese zodiac beneath them and an astronomical chart on the ceiling. | Asuka period, 7th or early 8th century | Five fresco paintings, color, , , ,, | Kitora Tomb, Asuka, Nara | |
| Frescoes in the Takamatsuzuka Tomb | — | — | Nara period | Four fresco paintings, color | Takamatsuzuka Tomb, Asuka, Nara | |
| Mandala of the Two Realms or Kojima mandala | — | Also known as or and originally kept at Kojimadera, Takatori. According to tradition, Shink, who restored Kojimadera, received the mandalas from Emperor Ichijō during the Chōhō era. | Heian period, early 11th century | Two hanging scrolls, gold and silver paint on dark blue silk, and | Nara National Museum, Nara, Nara | |
| or Matsuura screen | — | — | Edo period, c. 1650 | Pair of six-section folding screens, color on paper with gold leaf background, | Yamato Bunkakan, Nara, Nara | |
| Illustrated stories about the boy Sudhana's pilgrimage to fifty-four deities and saints | — | — | Heian period, 12th century | Hand scroll, color on paper, | Tōdai-ji, Nara, Nara | |
| , early 12th century | Three hand scrolls, color on paper,, , | Chōgosonshi-ji, Heguri, Nara | ||||
| , early 12th century | Hand scroll, color on paper, | Yamato Bunkakan, Nara, Nara | ||||
| , 12th century | Hand scroll, color on paper, | Nara National Museum, Nara, Nara | ||||
| Extermination of Evil | — | — | Heian period, 12th century | Five hanging scrolls, color on paper, 25.8–26.0 cm x 39.2–77.2 cm | Nara National Museum, Nara, Nara | |
| Landscape or Hue of the Water, Light on the Peaks | attributed to Tenshō Shūbun, inscriptions by Kosei Ryuha, Shinchi Mintoku and Shinden Seiha | — | Muromachi period, 1445 | Hanging scroll, ink and light color on paper, | Nara National Museum, Nara, Nara | |
| Taishakuten mandala | — | Currently located in the middle of three bays on the wall behind the chief object of worship in the kondō of the temple, but might not have always been located there. As the temple was previously a Shinto/Buddhist temple associated with the dragon god, there is a possibility this painting was originally intended as a dragon god mandala, or a mandala of praying for rain. | Heian period, 9th century | Wall mural, colors on wood | Murō-ji, Uda, Nara | |
| Portrait of Kichijōten | — | — | Nara period | Colors on hemp, | Yakushi-ji, Nara, Nara | |
| Hanging scroll, colors on silk, | Reihōkan, Mt. Kōya, Wakayama | |||||
| The Coming of | Three hanging scrolls, colors on silk, triptych | Yūshi Hachimankō Jūhakkain, Mt. Kōya, Wakayama | ||||
| Portrait of Buddhist monk Gonsō | — | The inscription on the top tells of a wooden sculpture of Gonsō being created after his death by his pupils praying for happiness in the next world and praising Gonsō's learning and virtue. | Heian period, 12th century | Hanging scroll, colors on silk, | Fūmon-in, Mt. Kōya, Wakayama | |
| Five great Bodhisattvas of strength | — | Originally five scrolls of which two were destroyed in fire in 1888., and remain. | Heian period | Three hanging scrolls, color on silk, , , | 有志八幡講十八箇院, Mt. Kōya, Wakayama | |
| Dragon King Zennyo Ryūō | Jōchi | — | Heian period, 1145 | Hanging scroll, color on silk, | Reihōkan, Mt. Kōya, Wakayama | |
| Senchū Yūgen Kannon | — | — | Heian period, 12th century | Hanging scroll, color on silk, | Ryūkōin, Mt. Kōya, Wakayama | |
| Buddha's Nirvana | — | — | Heian period, 1086 | Hanging scroll, color on silk, | Reihōkan, Kongōbu-ji, Mt. Kōya, Wakayama | |
| Landscape and figures on sliding partitions | Ike no Taiga | — | Edo period, 18th century | Ten paintings on fusuma, color on paper | Reihōkan,, Mt. Kōya, Wakayama | |
| The Legendary Origins of Kokawadera | — | — | early Kamakura period, 12th century | Hand scroll, color on paper, | Kokawadera, Kinokawa, Wakayama | |
| Fugen Bosatsu | — | — | Heian period, 12th century | Hanging scroll, color on silk, | Bujō-ji, Chizu, Tottori | |
| or | — | — | Yuan dynasty, 14th century | Hanging scroll, color on silk, | private, Kurashiki, Okayama | |
| Landscape by Sesshū | Sesshū Tōyō | — | Muromachi period | Hanging scroll, ink and light color on paper | private, Kurashiki, Okayama | |
| Fugen Enmei | — | — | Heian period, 1153 | Hanging scroll, color on silk, | Jikō-ji, Onomichi, Hiroshima | |
| Taira no Kiyomori and 32 members of the Taira clan | 30 scrolls of the Lotus Sutra, one Amitabha Sutra scroll, one Heart Sutra scroll and one prayer scroll in the handwriting of Taira no Kiyomori dedicated to the Itsukushima Shrine. | Heian period, 1164 | 33 sūtra hand scrolls with illustrations, ink on decorated paper, , , , | Itsukushima Shrine, Hatsukaichi, Hiroshima | ||
| Landscapes of the Four Seasons | Sesshū Tōyō | — | Muromachi period, 1486 | Hand scroll, ink and light color on paper, | Mōri Museum, Hōfu, Yamaguchi |