The most famous site on Miyajima is undoubtedly the Itsukushima Shrine with its striking red O-Torii. Itsukushima, or “island of worship”, has been designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It was originally built over 1,400 years ago, although the current structure was built in 1168 by Taira no Kiyomori, who was head of the imperial government at the time.
Built on the water, the shrine appears to float on the sea during high tide. As Miyajima is considered to be God’s island, builders weren’t allowed to anchor the 16.6-metre tall gate into the ground, so it’s kept in place by its sheer weight of 60 tonnes. The shrine itself is made up of several buildings that are connected by walkways over the water. They include a prayer hall, a main hall and a Noh theatre stage. The floating Torii gate is scheduled for renovation in June 2019, with works expected to take at least a year.
