Masterpiece returns to Tokyo after 60 years! Special Exhibition: “Unkei: The Space of Prayer – Kōfuku-ji's North Round Hall” runs until 30 November in Special Room 5, Main Building, Tokyo National Museum, Ueno
1)
The miraculous special exhibition ‘Unkei: The Space of Prayer—Kōfuku-ji's North Round Hall’, attempting to recreate the inner sanctuary of Kōfuku-ji's North Round Hall during the Kamakura revival period, is being held until Sunday, 30 November 2025, in Special Exhibition Room 5 of the Main Building at the Tokyo National Museum in Ueno.
TOP Image 1 = National Treasure Seated Miroku Nyorai Statue (Detail) by Unkei, Kamakura period, c. 1212, Kōfuku-ji Temple, Nara. Enshrined initially in the North Round Hall. Photograph: Sasaki Kōsuke.
2)
Unkei's supreme sacred space revived:
Image 2 = National Treasure: Exterior of Kōfuku-ji's North Round Hall. Photograph: Sasaki Kōsuke.
The North Round Hall is considered a precious example that directly conveys the original space where Unkei's Buddhist statues were enshrined. To commemorate its restoration completion, the Maitreya Tathagata Seated Statue will be displayed outside the temple for the first time in approximately 60 years. Alongside the Maitreya Tathagata Seated Statue and the Vasubandhu and Asanga Bodhisattva Standing Statues, seven National Treasure Buddhist statues – including the Four Heavenly Kings Standing Statues, highly likely to have been enshrined in the North Round Hall in the past – will be exhibited together. This aims to recreate the inner sanctuary of the North Round Hall as it was during the Kamakura revival period.
3)
Mr Daisuke Kojima, Head of the Conservation and Restoration Office, Conservation Science Section, Academic Research Department, Tokyo National Museum, stated: "Although Kōfuku-ji's Hokendō was destroyed by the Heike clan's burning of Nara, its reconstruction was likely undertaken by Unkei, arguably Japan's most renowned Buddhist sculptor.
This exhibition brings together the seated Maitreya Buddha, the standing statues of Bodhisattvas Asanga and Vasubandhu that remain in the North Round Hall, and the Four Heavenly Kings statues now enshrined in the Central Golden Hall, recreating the North Round Hall during the Kamakura reconstruction period. This is an exclusive feature of this exhibition, not visible even when strolling through the temple grounds. Do not miss this unparalleled opportunity to experience the supreme space created by these seven National Treasure Buddhist statues by Unkei."
Image 3 = National Treasure: Standing Statue of Bodhisattva Asanga, by Unkei, Kamakura period, c. 1212, Kōfuku-ji Temple, Nara, formerly enshrined in the North Round Hall. Photograph: Sasaki Kōsuke.
Image 4 = National Treasure: Standing Statue of Bodhisattva Vasubandhu, by Unkei, Kamakura period, c. 1212, Kōfuku-ji Temple, Nara, formerly enshrined in the North Round Hall. Photograph: Sasaki Kōsuke.
4)
World Heritage Kōfuku-ji Temple's North Round Hall Appears in Tokyo:
The North Round Hall of Kōfuku-ji Temple is said to have been constructed in August of the 5th year of the Yōrō era (721), the first anniversary of Fujiwara no Fuhito's death, when Emperors Genmei and Genshō commanded Prince Nagaya to build it. However, it suffered repeated disasters and was rebuilt around 1210, following the burning of Nara in 1180. It is the oldest extant building within Kōfuku-ji's temple complex and is designated a National Treasure.
Within the octagonal hall's inner sanctuary stands an octagonal shumidan altar platform, housing nine Buddhist statues, including the principal image, a seated Maitreya Tathagata. It is regarded as a masterpiece of Japanese-style architecture, retaining features of the Nara period, and is acclaimed as the most elegant surviving octagonal hall in Japan.
5)
Furthermore, the standing statues of the Four Heavenly Kings from the North Round Hall, long believed lost, are now widely accepted as being the statues currently enshrined in the Central Golden Hall. Though differing in atmosphere from the Maitreya Buddha statue and the statues of Asanga and Vasubandhu, with their vibrant ornamentation and fierce expressions, these Four Heavenly Kings are also considered the work of the Unkei school due to their excellent modelling based on Tenpyō-period sculpture.
Through this exhibition, which recreates the original arrangement by displaying the Maitreya Buddha and Vasubandhu/Asanga statues from the North Round Hall alongside the Four Heavenly Kings statues from the Central Golden Hall, visitors can experience the spatial composition created by the Unkei school.
6)
Image 5 = National Treasure: Seated Maitreya Buddha (detail) by Unkei, Kamakura period, c. 1212, Kōfuku-ji Temple, Nara, housed in the North Round Hall. Photograph: Sasaki Kōsuke.
Image 6 = National Treasure: Standing Four Heavenly Kings (Vaisravana) (detail), Kamakura period, 13th century, Kōfuku-ji Temple, Nara, housed in the Central Golden Hall. Photograph: Sasaki Kōsuke.
7)
Exhibition Overview
Special Exhibition: ‘Unkei: The Space of Prayer – Kōfuku-ji's North Round Hall’
Dates: Tuesday, 9 September 2025 – Sunday, 30 November 2025
Opening Hours: 9:30–17:00
Venue: Tokyo National Museum, Main Building, Special Exhibition Room 5
Masterpiece returns to Tokyo after 60 years! Special Exhibition: “Unkei: The Space of Prayer – Kōfuku-ji's North Round Hall” runs until 30 November in Special Room 5, Main Building, Tokyo National Museum, Ueno
https://san-tatsu.jp/news/455161/
