Five-Storied Pagoda 室生寺五重塔

At just 16.1 meters tall, this pagoda is both the smallest outdoor five-story pagoda in Japan and the second oldest after the pagoda at Horyuji Temple. Originally built in the late eighth century, it is roofed with cypress bark and topped with an unusual canopy, as well as an ornament in the shape of a flask.

This pagoda, a symbol of the natural and architectural beauty of Muroji Temple, is a memorial to the historical Buddha, Shakyamuni. It is especially stunning when framed by rhododendrons in spring and Japanese maple trees in autumn. In 1998, a typhoon caused a large tree to fall onto the pagoda, damaging it severely. Donations poured in from across Japan and overseas, not only from Buddhists but people of every faith, and the pagoda was rebuilt over a two-year period.