Yashimaji Temple Museum 屋島寺宝物館

Official explanation

The Yashimaji Temple Museum, located beside the main hall (hondo), showcases relics and artifacts from the temple’s long history. Items include images of Buddhist deities, hanging scrolls, and decorative folding screens (byobu).

Many of the exhibits are related to the Battle of Yashima (1185), a key moment in Japanese history when the Minamoto clan defeated the Taira clan in the closing stages of the Genpei War (1180–1185). These include two hanging picture scrolls by Kano Tanshin (1653–1718), which together form a single scene from the battle. The scrolls depict the Minamoto warrior Nasu no Yoichi (c.1169–c.1232) shooting an arrow at a fan held aloft on one of the retreating Taira ships.

Read the full explanation

Also on display are white banners donated by Yoichi’s descendants. These are not objects of surrender, but rather battle standards flown by the Minamoto clan during the war.

The museum houses the temple’s Thousand-Armed Kannon statue, believed to have been carved by the priest Kukai (774–835). In addition, there is a famous folding screen painted by Tosa Mitsuoki (1617–1691), which depicts the Battle of Yashima itself, as well as a number of other hanging picture scrolls.

出典: 地域観光資源の多言語解説文データベース（観光庁） — www.mlit.go.jp/tagengo-db. この英語解説文は観光庁の地域観光資源の多言語解説整備支援事業で作成しました。
Source: Japan Tourism Agency, Multilingual Explanation Database. This English text was produced by the Japan Tourism Agency's multilingual explanation project and is shown unedited. Opening hours and services may have changed since it was written.