These medieval stone-cut Buddhist statues may protect visitors from being fired.

The site where the famous city gate once stood, now in the middle of a playground.

A hole-in-the-wall antiquities museum in one of Tokyo's most popular megamalls.

The largest of its kind in Japan, this century-old wasabi farm is also known for its appearance in an Akira Kurosawa film.

This infamous execution site inspired the beginning of Japan's modernization in the late 18th-century.

The largest privately owned statue of Buddha in Japan, built by a total amateur, with an unconventional look.

This sports stadium was made from 25,000 cypress trees and ranks among the world's largest wooden domes.

Composed of scrap metal, a pair of platform-length murals chronicle Japan’s history, from the Big Bang to the development of modern Tokyo.

A site where ten to twenty thousand Edo-era prisoners were put to death.

The "largest bathroom stall in the world" offers a unique pit-stop experience.

The site of Japan's first major environmental disaster.

These sculptures were created by a 17th-century artist who had never seen an elephant.

Japan's iconic sci-fi hero rendered to 8-bit by notorious French street artist Invader.

This western-themed amusement park is host to a large number of decaying animatronic cowboys.

The oldest academic institution in Japan provides a glimpse of university life during the days of the samurai.

A kitsch shrine dedicated to the ogre-slaying folktale hero born from a peach.

This ancient burial cave along a roadside is also home to several Buddhist sculptures.

One of the few surviving World War II-era air-raid shelters in Tokyo.

The remains of the vast manor that once belonged to Lord Kira, villain in the 47 Ronin story, is now a shrine dedicated to the incident.

See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil.

More than 300 years old, Kyoto's historic "teahouse" still operates as an invitation-only geisha club.

A cursed torii gate still stands on the edge of Haneda Airport, decades after its shrine's relocation.

The birthplace of Japanese coinage.

Chiseled out of a sandstone cliff, one farmer's unfinished art project lies in ruins.