Ten pairs of tickets to the "National Treasures of Japan" exhibition, being held at the Tokyo National Museum in Ueno Park through May 7, will be given away to 10 Japan Times readers.
The exhibition commemorates the 50th anniversary of the Cultural Properties Protection Act, enacted in 1950 after a fire damaged Horyuji Temple in Nara in 1949.
Some 250 national treasures in five categories -- painting, calligraphy, sculpture, crafts and archeological relics -- have been collected from museums around the nation for the exhibition. They include the Eleven-faced Kannon statue from the 12th century and "Kanpuzu," a painting that depicts people viewing maple trees, by 16th-century master Kano Hideyori. A replica of a mural of elegant courtiers discovered at the ancient Takamatsuzuka tomb during the Showa Period will also be on show.
To apply for tickets, write your name and address on a postcard and send to: "National Treasures of Japan" Ticket Giveaway, Arts and Entertainment Section, The Japan Times, 4-5-4 Shibaura, Minato-ku, Tokyo 108-0023. The application deadline is April 10. The winners will receive tickets in the mail.