Inuyama Castle

Inuyama Castle (Inuyama-jo) was completed in 1537. It was built by Oda Nobuyasu, who was the uncle of the famous daimyo Oda Nobunaga, who tried to unify Japan in the 16th century. The top level of the castle tower is an observation room measuring 7.3 m north to south and 5.5 m east to west, and it retains the fine characteristics of when the castle tower was first designed. It is roughly 25 m high measured from ground level, and is designated a National Treasure.

Iwasaki Castle

Iwasaki Castle (Iwasaki-jo) was built in the latter half of the 16th century by the daimyo Niwa Ujikiyo. Standing on top of a small hill, Iwasaki is an early example of a Japanese castle, and as the hill itself played the role of the castle walls it did not require the sloping castle walls seen in later constructions, which were built on flat land. The castle ruin is now a park, but archeological research was undertaken when the park was being created and remains of a turret and the well were found. There is a three-tiered donjon in the center of the park which was built in recent years and houses a historical museum, exhibiting information relating to the castle.

Kiyosu Castle

Kiyosu Castle (Kiyosu-jo) was built by the daimyo Shiba Yoshishige, who governed this region at the beginning of the 15th century. It was at first a simple construction which was surrounded by a single moat. It was subsequently home of the young daimyo Oda Nobunaga. Nobunaga died without fulfilling his life's ambition of extending his influence and ruling the whole of Japan in the 16th century. It was remodeled by his son Nobuo, who expanded the castle grounds to roughly 1.6 km east to west and 2.8 km north to south. A triple moat was also constructed. When Tokugawa Ieyasu came to rule the entire country, the donjon was razed to build Nagoya Castle and no remains from those times now exist. The castle ruin has now become a park, Kiyosu Koen, and the existing donjon is a four-storied ferroconcrete building which was built in 1989.

Nagoya Castle

Nagoya Castle (Nagoya-jo) is known throughout the world as one of Japan's greatest castles, alongside Himeji and Kumamoto Castles. The founder of the shogunal government that ruled Japan over roughly 265 years from the beginning of the 17th century, Tokugawa Ieyasu, had the castle completed by mobilizing influential daimyo from all over the country. The five-tiered donjon was roughly 19.5 m in height from the bottom of the moat to the stone wall on the foundation, and the building was 33.5 m tall. Most of the buildings were destroyed by fire in the air raid of May 1945, during WWII, but donjon and other structures were rebuilt in 1959. The gold sea creatures ornamenting the roof were also restored then, and are popular among the residents of Nagoya as the city's symbol, along with the castle.

Okazaki Castle

Okazaki Castle (Okazaki-jo) was built over a four-year period by a daimyo from the Mikawa region of Aichi Prefecture around the middle of the 15th century. The moat, which remains to this day, is from the time when the castle was built. Tokugawa Ieyasu, who began the Edo shogunate at the beginning of the 17th century, was born in this castle. His father, Matsudaira Hirotada, who governed this region, lived here. It was destroyed when political power passed from the shogunate to the Meiji Government, as it symbolized the political power of the samurai. The existing five-tiered donjon was reconstructed in 1959. Information relating to Okazaki Castle is exhibited inside the donjon.

Yoshida Castle

Yoshida Castle (Yoshida-jo) was built in 1505 by Lord Makino, who governed this region. At first it was called Imahashi Castle after the place name, but it was subsequently changed to Yoshida Castle as it changed hands many times because of war. The total area is roughly 112,000 sq m and there is an extant old stone wall and a three-tiered donjon that was reconstructed in 1954.

Toyota Automobile Museum

The Toyota Automobile Museum was built to commemorate the 100-year history of the rapid development of automobiles, and systematically exhibits its collection of automobiles from around the world. The main building of the museum displays approximately 120 automobiles, which mainly cover the history of practical cars in the late 19th and 20th centuries from when the first gasoline-powered car was created. The annex building exhibits the history of the motorization of Japan, and elaborates on the influence of the automobile on our lives and culture. The reading room houses about 9,000 books on Japanese and foreign cars and the special reading room, the Igarashi Collection, displays the collection of Heitatsu Igarashi, an automobile history researcher.

Toyota Commemorative Museum of Industry and Technology

Parts of the original redbrick buildings dating from the Taisho Era (around the 1910s) are preserved as an important industrial heritage and are integrated into the Toyota Commemorative Museum of Industry and Technology. The museum was established in 1994 to convey to future generations the importance of manufacturing and the "spirit of creation and research." Within its spacious exhibition area of 14,133 square meters, the museum contains the Textile Machinery Pavilion, the Automobile Pavilion, Technoland and other facilities which contain many valued items and documents belonging to the founder Sakichi Toyoda. In the Textile Machinery and Automobile Pavilions, visitors can learn about the basic elements, and the history, of technologies through the configuration models on display and the actual processes as shown by an operator, while Technoland provides hands-on experiences of learning the basic principles and mechanisms of various machines. There are approximately 4,000 exhibits.

Nagoya-shi Bijutsukan

Nagoya-shi Bijutsukan (Nagoya Municipal Museum), is situated in a wooded setting composed primarily of keyaki (zelkova) trees in Shirakawa Koen, a park in the center of the city of Nagoya. The museum has focused on the systematic collection of works by artists associated with areas around Ise Bay, regarded as part of the Nagoya cultural sphere. It aims to portray the artistic aspects of the individual artists as thoroughly as possible. The works of Tamiji Kitagawa, a Western-style painter, are one instance of this approach. The collection also includes works of the Mexican Renaissance, said to have had a great influence on Kitagawa's artistic activities. To broaden its international profile, the museum is also in the process of collecting works from the Ecole de Paris and contemporary fine art.

The Tokugawa Art Museum

The Tokugawa Art Museum was founded in 1935 with a donation by Tokugawa Yoshichika, the lord of Owari Province. The collection holds more than ten thousands and several thousands of items including historic treasures of the Tokugawa Family, known as "Daimyo dogu (tools of the daimyo)," their mementos, and other objects used by generations of Tokugawa clan lords from Yoshinao (the son of the first Tokugawa shogun, Ieyasu) onwards; among them, there are nine designated National Treasures, and another 57 objects registered as Important Cultural Properties. The exhibits in the permanent collection change monthly. The Museum presents seven or eight special exhibitions per year, including, in March, the exhibition of the sets of Hina Dolls set up to pray for the happiness and healthy growth of girls, and in November, the exhibition of the world famous "Genjimonogatari emaki(The Picture Scroll of the Tale of Genji)", one of the Important Cultural Properties.

Atsuta-jingu Shrine

The history of Atsuta-jingu, located in Atsuta-ku, Nagoya-shi in Aichi Prefecture, dates back 2,000 years. The shrine's history begins with the dedication of a treasured sword, Kusanagi-no Tsurugi ("Grass-mowing Sword") by Prince Yamatotakeru-no-Mikoto, a legendary figure appearing in Japanese mythology. With many worshippers, the shrine is known affectionately today as "Atsuta-sama." In the precincts of the shrine is a giant camphor tree around 1,000 years old which is said to have been planted by the saint Kobo-daishi (Kukai), who propagated Buddhism in Japan following Buddhist studies in China. Notwithstanding its location in the heart of the city of Nagoya, the precincts of Atsuta-jingu are filled with greenery, and provide people with a place to relax as well as worship.

Horai-ji Temple

Horai-ji located in Horai-cho, Aichi Prefecture. The temple was built in 703 by the hermit Rishu. It is sacred to Yakushi-Nyorai and is venerated as a place for curing diseases by many powerful men including Takeda Shingen, a daimyo of the 16th century, and Tokugawa Ieyasu, ruler of Japan early in the 17th century. The influence of the temple has declined since the mid-19th century, however, when the samurai rule of Japan came to an end, with the result that only the sanctuary, Nio-mon ("Deva King Gate"), bell tower, Okuno-in (inner shrine), Ko-do (small hall), and two small annexes remain today. The approach to the temple features 1,452 stone steps lined with gigantic cedar trees. The remains of the buildings and other structures here remind visitors of the prosperity of bygone days.

Toyokawa Inari Shrine

Toyokawa Inari is located in Toyokawa-cho, Aichi Prefecture, and was formerly named Toyokawakaku Myogon-ji. It was built in 1441. Together with the Fushimi Inari Shrine in Kyoto and the Yutoku Inari Shrine in Saga, it is one of the leading Inari-jinja in Japan. Merchants hoping for prosperity have worshiped Inari as the god of commerce from early times. While it is a shrine, it is in fact sacred to both the Shinto and the Buddhism. On New Year's Day, a great number of people visit this shrine to wish for good fortune in the New Year.

Arimatsu tie-dyeing

Arimatsu-shibori tie-dyeing began in 1608 in the town of Arimatsu located on the Tokai-do Highway linking Edo (now Tokyo) and Kyoto. It was known as the local specialty of the Tokai-do route, its indigo monotone making it a popular fabric for the summer kimono worn by ordinary people. As production and sales of the fabric were prohibited outside Arimatsu by the feudal lord governing the region at the time, tie-dyeing developed into a sizeable industry here. Nowadays, Arimatsu tie-dyed fabric can be purchased in department stores and kimono shops. There are said to be over 100 methods of tie-dyeing, and traditional methods are used for dyeing silk, cotton and synthetics. Arimatsu tie-dyeing was designated a traditional craft in 1975.

Seto ware

The city of Seto in Aichi Prefecture is one of Japan's leading areas of ceramics production. The Akazu ware of Seto in particular rates as one of the top six kilns in Japan. Seto ware features a colorful glaze, and Kiseto, Shino and Oribe varieties of Seto ware with a history of several hundred years, are typical examples of the items made here. The region is endowed with a supply of good quality kaolin, and the techniques used by skilled potters to make tea ceremony utensils, vases for Japanese flower arranging and general tableware have been handed down for generations. Seto-yaki ware was designated a traditional craft in 1977.

Tokoname ware

Tokoname-yaki ware is said to have been produced in the city of Tokoname, Aichi Prefecture for over 1,000 years. Originally, items such as vases were fired using a method known as shizen'yu yakijime, in which pottery is fired without glaze. Later, Tokoname ware became famous for the production of earthenware pipes, and is now widely known for pottery using red clay. Tokoname ware was designated a traditional craft in 1976.

Toyohashi-fude

The use of Toyohashi-fude (writing brushes of Toyohashi) dates from 1804, when a feudal lord ruling the Toyohashi region of Aichi Prefecture invited Suzuki Jinzaemon, a master brushmaker in Kyoto, to supply brushes under his patronage, and consequently production grew in this area as a sideline for members of the samurai class to supplement their incomes. With the growth of other types of writing utensils after World War II, the demand for writing brushes dwindled. Later, calligraphy lessons were reintroduced to the Japanese school curriculum, stimulating demand once more. Toyohashi-fude writing brushes account for 25% of total production in Japan, and as much as 80% of top quality brushes.