Museums in Japan

Celebrating the famous Nebuta festival of Aomori and showcasing its huge papier-mâché floats.

A nondescript building is home to a one-room museum filled with an overwhelming array of art and objects.

A small, family-friendly museum dedicated to the “god of special effects” who brought Godzilla to life.

This unique museum explores the world of Japanese demons and spirits.

A glimpse into life in 1830s Tokyo, back during the heyday of the Tokugawa shogunate.

Learn about the indigenous people of Japan's northernmost islands.

This lesser-visited gallery in a corner of the Tokyo National Museum complex is an architectural beauty dedicated to the ancient treasures of Hōryū-ji.

The strange “kaiju” of Lake Imba that allegedly killed over a dozen men with a single strike of lightning.

A museum housed in a stunning Rockefeller-funded medical institute building from the 1930s.

This futuristic-looking museum was built for the centennial of Japan's most innovative toilet.

A collection of nostalgic items from the Showa era with an exhibit on the local ghost story of the Snow Woman.

This prehistoric site is home to the largest shell midden cluster in Japan.

No one knows why this family’s graves stayed on the national museum's premises after all other tombstones were relocated.

A nouveau-riche hilltop “palace” that once provided lodging to more than a hundred fishermen.

The remains of a prehistoric settlement with a museum showcasing fascinating archaeological finds next to modern artworks.

This dazzling three-story shop showcases the art and history of music boxes, a popular novelty in Japan.