The Museum of the Imperial Collections, Sannomaru Shozokan
Japanese original:
皇居三の丸尚蔵館
A museum inside the East Gardens of the Imperial Palace, holding paintings, calligraphy, crafts and historical documents handed down in the imperial family. In 1989 the former Emperor and Empress Kojun donated them to the nation, and it opened in 1993 as the Sannomaru Shozokan of the Imperial Household Agency. Since 2023 it has been run by the National Institutes for Cultural Heritage, and it had its grand opening on November 3, 2026.
- Area
- Takebashi & Kitanomaru Park
- Address
- 東京都千代田区千代田1-8 皇居東御苑内
- Getting there
- Enter by Otemon Gate: about 5 min on foot from Exit C13a, Otemachi Station, then about 100 m inside; enter by Hirakawamon Gate: about 10 min from Exit 1a, Takebashi Station
- Hours
- 09:30–17:00
- Closed
- Mon
- Admission
- Varies by exhibition (the grand-opening special exhibitions are ¥2,500 to ¥3,000, timed entry); free for those under 23, university, high school and junior high school students, and elementary school children and younger
Regular closing days only. For public holidays, please check each venue's notices.
Directions and admission checked against the venue's website on Nov 5, 2026.
First visit
- The museum is inside the East Gardens: on Fridays the Gardens are closed to the public and the only way in is Otemon Gate, with a bag check at the gate, so allow time. Hirakawamon and Kita-hanebashimon gates are closed on Mondays and Fridays.
- The grand-opening special exhibitions use timed entry, with no same-day tickets sold on site; free admission also needs a reserved time slot.
- There are coin lockers (¥100, refunded), no restaurant or café inside, and no re-entry once you leave. Whether photography is allowed depends on the exhibition; follow the signs.
From the venue's visitor guidelines, checked on Nov 5, 2026.
On now and coming up
Exhibitions (Open now 1 · Opening soon 2)
The Japanese original of each title and venue name is shown in gray below it.
Related knowledge cards
- Shōsōin treasuresAbout 9,000 treasures from the Nara period kept in the Shōsōin, the storehouse of Tōdai-ji in Nara, centred on things Emperor Shōmu loved in his lifetime.
- Colorful Realm of Living BeingsA set of thirty paintings by Ito Jakuchu, filled with richly coloured animals and plants.
- Kana calligraphy and wayōA Japanese style of writing that developed from the Heian period, centred on kana set down in linked and scattered lines on decorated paper.
