A collection of Buddhist sculpture and art from the Nara and Heian periods in a neoclassical building next to the park; adult admission ~700 ¥.
The Nara National Museum, located within Nara Park next to the Sarusawa-ike pond, is one of the best museums of Buddhist art in Japan. Founded in 1889, it preserves its elegant original neoclassical building —known as the Nara Wing— joined by an underground passage to a modern wing. The permanent collection brings together more than 2.000 pieces of sculpture, painting, liturgical objects and decorative arts from the Nara (710-794) and Heian (794-1185) periods, mostly from the temples and shrines of the region. Among the most outstanding pieces are the famous Hell Scroll (12th century), bronze Buddhist statues from the 8th and 9th centuries and medieval mandalas of great precision. Admission for adults costs 700 ¥; under-18s enter free. There are certain free-admission days each year. The museum opens from 09:30 to 17:00 (until 20:00 on Saturdays); it closes on Mondays. In autumn the Great Shōsōin Exhibition is held, very popular and with long queues, with pieces from the imperial treasure of the 7th and 8th centuries. Book tickets in advance if you visit on those dates. It is a 5-minute walk from Kintetsu Nara Station.
