Nearby the Treasure House from the Tōshōgū Shrine in Nikko, there is an old stone gate, covered in moss, passing almost unnoticed among the spectacular structures around.
The stone gate was built in 1640 and it’s an important monument because it was part of the Okusha Inner Shrine, the tomb of the first Shogun, Ieyasu Tokugawa.
But soon after its construction, in the Keian period (1648-1651), the gate was damaged by consecutive major earthquakes and it was buried. It was recovered three centuries later in 1967, when it was excavated and restored at the Tōshōgū Shrine.

Kyu-okusha Karamon Gate, Nikko

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Yesterday’s Japan Photo: Thai Architecture in Tokyo, Sala Thai