Photos of Isui-en Garden and Neiraku Museum of Art

On the west side of the south gate of Todaiji Temple and on the banks of the Yoshijo River, Yisui Garden is one of the few Japanese-style gardens in Nara. Yisui Garden consists of two parts with different interests, the front garden and the back garden. The back garden can be said to be a masterpiece of garden construction techniques in the Meiji period. The former garden was part of the residence of Kiyosumi Michiki, a linen maker from Nara in the 17th century. In the courtyard, there was a tea room, Sanshutei, with the roofs of Yixuan and reeds. In the Meiji era, the industrialist Sekito Jiro invested in the construction of the back garden, with the surrounding Mt. Wakakusa, Mt. Kasuga and Mt. Gogai as the distant view, the roof of the south gate of Todaiji Temple and the trees on both sides of the Todaiji Temple's pilgrimage road as the mid-view. In the park, pools, hills, and clear streams are built, and a variety of rare trees are planted. In the back garden, buildings such as Liushengtang, Bingxin Pavilion, Tingxiu Xuan, Qingxiu An and other buildings are also very unique and elegant. Column cornerstones that were once used in Todai-ji Temple are also placed in various parts of the garden, creating an elegant view everywhere. In addition, the Ningle Art Museum is next to the Yishui Garden, and most of the rare treasures are exhibited.