Kyoto Gardens of Honolulu Memorial Park
Encyclopedia
The Kyoto Gardens of Honolulu Memorial Park is a cemetery
Cemetery
A cemetery is a place in which dead bodies and cremated remains are buried. The term "cemetery" implies that the land is specifically designated as a burying ground. Cemeteries in the Western world are where the final ceremonies of death are observed...

 located in the eastern half of the Honolulu Memorial Park, 22 Craigside Place, Honolulu, Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...

. Its three-tiered Sanju Pagoda, the Kinkaku-ji Temple, and Mirror Gardens are fine examples of Japanese traditional-style structures and gardens built outside of Japan. The gardens were listed in the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...

 as site 04000020 on February 11, 2004.

Honolulu Memorial Park was established in 1958, and its Buddhist Kinkaku-ji memorial and Sanju Pagoda were constructed between 1964-1966 as part of the Nuuanu Memorial Gardens Funerary Home, adjacent to history Oahu Cemetery
Oahu Cemetery
The Oahu Cemetery is the resting place of many notable early residents of the Honolulu area. They range from missionaries and politicians to sports pioneers and philosophers. Over time it was expanded to become an area known as the Nuuanu Cemetery....

. This name was changed to Kyoto Gardens in 1966 when the City of Kyoto
Kyoto
is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. It has a population close to 1.5 million. Formerly the imperial capital of Japan, it is now the capital of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as a major part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area.-History:...

, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

, donated a bronze bell, with Abbot Jikai Murakami of Kyoto's Kinkaku-ji present for the opening.
  • The Sanju Pagoda is modeled after the Hokke-ji
    Hokke-ji
    , is a Buddhist temple located in the city of Nara, Japan.Hokke-ji was built by Empress Kōmyō in 745, originally as a nunnery temple on the grounds where previously her father Fujiwara no Fuhito's mansion stood. According to records kept by the temple, the initial construction went on until around...

     Temple (Kanji
    Kanji
    Kanji are the adopted logographic Chinese characters hanzi that are used in the modern Japanese writing system along with hiragana , katakana , Indo Arabic numerals, and the occasional use of the Latin alphabet...

    : 南法華寺) in Nara
    Nara, Nara
    is the capital city of Nara Prefecture in the Kansai region of Japan. The city occupies the northern part of Nara Prefecture, directly bordering Kyoto Prefecture...

    , Japan
    Japan
    Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

     which was built in the Momoyama Period (1571–1602). The garden replica is built of concrete and steel, and somewhat larger than the original with a height from foundation to rooftop of 80 feet. Including the ku-rin copper spire, its total height is 116 feet.

  • The Kinkaku-ji (Kanji
    Kanji
    Kanji are the adopted logographic Chinese characters hanzi that are used in the modern Japanese writing system along with hiragana , katakana , Indo Arabic numerals, and the occasional use of the Latin alphabet...

    : 金閣寺) columbarium is modeled upon the renowned Kinkaku-ji
    Kinkaku-ji
    , also known as , is a Zen Buddhist temple in Kyoto, Japan. The garden complex is an excellent example of Muromachi period garden design. It is designated as a National Special Historic Site and a National Special Landscape, and it is one of 17 locations comprising the Historic Monuments of Ancient...

     (Golden Pavilion) located on the grounds of the Rokuonji Temple in Kyoto
    Kyoto
    is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. It has a population close to 1.5 million. Formerly the imperial capital of Japan, it is now the capital of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as a major part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area.-History:...

    , built in the Muromachi Period
    Muromachi period
    The is a division of Japanese history running from approximately 1336 to 1573. The period marks the governance of the Muromachi or Ashikaga shogunate, which was officially established in 1338 by the first Muromachi shogun, Ashikaga Takauji, two years after the brief Kemmu restoration of imperial...

     (1335–1573). It is three stories tall (38 feet), constructed with steel frame and plaster finish, and with a phoenix finial
    Finial
    The finial is an architectural device, typically carved in stone and employed decoratively to emphasize the apex of a gable or any of various distinctive ornaments at the top, end, or corner of a building or structure. Smaller finials can be used as a decorative ornament on the ends of curtain rods...

     at its roof peak.

  • Mirror Lake Garden, surrounding Kinkaku-ji, also reflects Muromachi Period
    Muromachi period
    The is a division of Japanese history running from approximately 1336 to 1573. The period marks the governance of the Muromachi or Ashikaga shogunate, which was officially established in 1338 by the first Muromachi shogun, Ashikaga Takauji, two years after the brief Kemmu restoration of imperial...

     (1335–1573) garden design.


Both the Sanju Pagoda and Kinkaku-ji serve as columbarium
Columbarium
A columbarium is a place for the respectful and usually public storage of cinerary urns . The term comes from the Latin columba and originally referred to compartmentalized housing for doves and pigeons .The Columbarium of Pomponius Hylas is a particularly fine ancient Roman example, rich in...

s. As of 2006 they were in poor repair, due to the cemetery's financial difficulties.
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