History & Culture in Kamakura

Discover 9 history & culture in Kamakura.

Kamakura, Japan

Seimei Stone

Associated with Japanese folklore's most eminent sorcerer, this slab of rock is said to be both a blessing and a curse.

Kamakura, Japan

Site of the Golden Dragon Spring

An unassuming set of tiles next to a mailbox mark the former location of one of the most famous springs in the city.

Hao-Hao Tunnel

Kamakura, Japan

Hao-Hao Tunnel

Over 80 years old, this hand-dug tunnel is a Chinese-style portal to another world.

Kamakura, Japan

Kamakura Carnival Mural

This frenetic mural recalls an annual festival that once took the city by storm.

Six Ksitigarbhas of Yuigahama

Kamakura, Japan

Six Ksitigarbhas of Yuigahama

These statues are dedicated to the damned souls of those executed centuries ago on the beautiful Yuigahama beach.

Kamakura, Japan

Muryōju-in Temple Site

Home to 800-year-old zen basin, a 400-year-old pilgrim’s path, and a century-old industrial grotto.

Kamakura, Japan

Hōjō-Komachi Archaeological Remains

The preserved ruins of the Hōjō clan’s palatial estate, hidden in the basement of a tourist information center.

Kamakura, Japan

Mandarado Burial Grottoes

An eerie cluster of medieval cave-like tombs carved out of a cliff, hidden in a historic mountain pass.

The Sixteen Wells and stone Buddhist statues.

Kamakura, Japan

Sixteen Wells

This mysterious medieval grotto holds a grid of sacred wells of unknown purpose.

The Harakiri Yagura, the site of Hōjō Takatoki's suicide.

Kamakura, Japan

Harakiri Yagura

Access to this hidden site of a 14th-century mass suicide is prohibited, unless it is to pray for the dead.

Are we missing something unusual in Kamakura?