Temples & Shrines Prints (1057)
Temples and shrines are among the most enduring subjects in Japanese printmaking, reflecting the central role of Buddhist temples and Shinto shrines in Japanese cultural life. These sacred structures, often set within landscapes of exceptional natural beauty, offered printmakers subjects that combined architectural precision with atmospheric grandeur. The meisho-e (famous places) tradition naturally featured prominent religious sites — Sensoji temple in Asakusa, Kiyomizu-dera in Kyoto, the Itsukushima shrine at Miyajima — alongside natural landmarks. Hiroshige's prints of temple precincts in rain, snow, and moonlight established visual conventions that shin-hanga artists would later refine. The torii gate, pagoda silhouette, and temple approach flanked by lanterns became iconic compositional elements. Kawase Hasui made temple and shrine subjects a specialty, producing atmospheric views of sacred sites across Japan that captured the interplay of architecture, nature, and light at specific times of day and seasons. His prints of snow-covered temple roofs and rain-washed shrine paths are among the most recognized images in twentieth-century Japanese art. The subject remains popular with contemporary moku-hanga artists, who continue to find fresh perspectives on Japan's architectural heritage.
Artists Known for Temples & Shrines
October (The Full-Moon Night at the Gate of the Chionin Monastery)
十月 (知恩院山門月夜)
second half 20th century
Woodblock print, ink and color on paper
Mt. Fuji from Takeda Shrine - Thirty-six Views of Mt. Fuji
Woodblock print
Aso Shrine - Famous, Sacred and Historical Places
Woodblock print
Izumo Shrine - Famous, Sacred and Historical Places
Woodblock print
Kamakura Shrine - Famous, Sacred and Historical Places
Woodblock print
Morning at Mihogaseki in Izumo Province (Izumo Mihogaseki no asa), from the series "Selection of Views of Japan (Nihon fukei senshu)"
1925
Color woodblock print; oban
Meiji Shrine and 1930s Cars - Famous Historic Places and Holy Places
Woodblock print
Minatogawa Shrine - Famous, Sacred and Historical Places
Woodblock print
Miyazaki Shrine - Famous, Sacred and Historical Places
Woodblock print
Nichizen Shrine - Famous, Sacred and Historical Places
Woodblock print
Spring at Kurama Temple
鞅馬寺春
Woodblock print
Kiyomizu Temple in the Snow
Woodblock print
Nawa Shrine in Snow
Woodblock print
Shirahige Shrine in the Snow
Woodblock print
Heian Shrine
Woodblock print
Kitano Shrine in the Early Spring
Woodblock print
Great Buddha at Kamakura
Woodblock print
Lu Zhishen in a Drunken Rage Attacking the Guardian Figure at the Temple on Mount Godai (Rochishin ransui Godaisan Kongojin o uchikowasu no zu)
September 1887
Color woodblock prints; oban diptych
Asakusa rokku (Sixth District of Asakusa) / Shin Tokyo hyakkei (One Hundred New Views of Tokyo, No. 67)
Woodblock print
Sano Shrine After the Rain
1938
Woodblock print
Sanzen Temple, Ohara, Kyoto (Kyoto Ohara Sanzenin)
1949
Color woodblock print
Saishō Temple in Hirosaki (Hirosaki, Saishō-in), from the series Collection of Scenic Views of Japan, Eastern Japan Edition (Nihon fūkei shū higashi Nihon hen)
1936
Woodblock print; ink and color on paper
Shofuku Temple, Niihama, Ako (Ako Niihama Shofukuji)
1950
Color woodblock print
Shogetsu Temple, Ito, Izu (Izu Ito Shogetsuin)
September 1933
Color woodblock print
The Kanda Myojin Shrine
1785-1787
Snow at Miyajima Shrine
1930s
Woodblock print, ink and color on paper
Snow at the Silver Pavilion (Ginkakuji no yuki)
June 1933
Color woodblock print
Snow at Tosho Shrine, Ueno (Ueno Toshogu no yuki)
July 1929
Color woodblock print
Snow at Zojo Temple (Yuki no Zojoji)
1922
Color woodblock print; oban
Sobu Garden, Meiji Shrine (Meiji jingu Sobuen)
1951
Color woodblock print
Tanigumi Temple, Mino (Mino no Tanigumidera)
1947
Color woodblock print
Wisteria Blossoms at Kameido Shrine, Tokyo (Kameido Tenmangu)
1936
Color woodblock print
Yakumo Bridge at the Nagata Shrine, Kobe, from the series "Collection of Scenic Views of Japan II, Kainsai Edition" (Nihon fukei shu II Kansai hen, Kobe Nagata jinja Yakumobashi)
October 1934
Color woodblock print
Yakushi Temple, Nara (Nara Yakushiji)
1951
Color woodblock print
Asakusa Temple
Woodblock print
Cherry Blossoms at the Tôshôgû Shrine in Ueno (Sakura, Ueno Tôshôgû)
Woodblock print
Front of the Engakuji Temple in Kamakura
Woodblock print
Gate at Enkaku Temple, Kamakura- Engakuji
Woodblock print
Great Lantern at the Asakusa Kannondo
Woodblock print
Haru no yuki - Asakusa Torigoe jinja (Spring Snow - The Torigoe Shrine at Asakusa)
Woodblock print
Inokashika-Inokashira Shrine
Woodblock print
Katorijingu Shrine - 香取神宮
Woodblock print
Lantern at Asakusa
Woodblock print
Moonrise At Nezu Gongen Shrine — 月の出 根津権現
Woodblock print
Shrine at Ueno, Tokyo
Woodblock print
Mountain Temple at Sendai (Sendai yamanodera), from the series "Collection of Scenic Views of Japan, Eastern Japan Edition (Nihon fukei shu higashi Nihon hen)"
1933
Color woodblock print; oban
Three-Headed Deity In Ashura Temple
Woodblock print
Temple in Rain
c. 1916
Color woodblock print
Kannonji Temple in Beppu- Kankaiji Temple — 別府温泉
Woodblock print
Asakusa Temple at Night
浅草寺の夜
c. 1917
Lithograph
Makakayo (Mahakasyapa), from the series "Two Bodhisattva and Ten Great Disciples of Buddha Sakyamuni (Nibosatsu Shaka judai deshi)"
1939-68
Woodblock print
Buddha
View of Fuji from Izumo
Woodblock print
Snow at Kinkakuji
Woodblock print
Tsutenbashi at Tofukuji Temple in Autumn
Woodblock print
Visiting Kiyomizu temple
Woodblock print
Kofukuji Temple, Nara
1937
Color woodblock print
Asakusa Kinryuzan
Woodblock print
Autumn Moon at Ishiyama Temple
1933
Color woodblock print
Evening at Mii Temple
Woodblock print
Related Subjects
Frequently Asked Questions
Temples and shrines are among the most enduring subjects in Japanese printmaking, reflecting the central role of Buddhist temples and Shinto shrines in Japanese cultural life. These sacred structures, often set within landscapes of exceptional natural beauty, offered printmakers subjects that combined architectural precision with atmospheric grandeur.
Kawase Hasui, Kotozuka Eiichi, and Utagawa Hiroshige are among the artists most associated with temples & shrines in our collection. Browse the full list of artists who explored this subject above.
Hanga currently catalogues 1057 prints tagged with temples & shrines, spanning ukiyo-e, shin-hanga, and sōsaku-hanga traditions where applicable.