OSAKA A high-rise hotel built on the grounds of a historic temple here opened its doors to reporters on Oct. 11 ahead of its grand opening in the following month.
Among murals kept at the treasure house are the large No. 10 painting, left, which shows the Bhaisajyaguru Pure Land; the smaller No. 11 Samantabhadra picture, center; and the No. 12 11-face Kannon mural. (Provided by Horyuji temple)
IKARUGA, Nara Prefecture A lucky few will get an exclusive viewing of fire-damaged murals that are set to go on limited display at Horyuji temple here.
The murals are called one of Asia s most significant Buddhist art treasures.
A total of 500 people who make donations of 10,000 yen ($90) to a crowdfunding campaign will be invited to see the murals at the temple, a UNESCO World Heritage site, in November.
A deer in Nara Park in November 2020 (Asahi Shimbun file photo)
NARA A man has been arrested here under suspicion of violating the Cultural Assets Preservation Law for killing a deer God’s sacred messenger according to ancient myth an act that once was a capital offense in Japan.
Nara prefectural police on March 2 arrested Hayato Yoshii, 23, a construction assistant in Matsusaka, Mie Prefecture, in connection with the death of a deer last month.
Police said sometime around Feb. 7, Yoshii smashed a sharp, thick object against the head of a doe estimated to be 11 years old, at Nara Park, a major tourist attraction in the city home to many deer.