Ryosenji Temple & Kurofune Museum(MoBS)

Ryosenji Temple, where the Treaty of Amity between Japan and the United States was signed,
is also famous as the “jasmine temple.”
Several hundred American jasmine bushes have been planted in the temple’s grounds and along the temple approach road.
When they blossom from mid- to late May, the surrounding area is enveloped in their sweet scent.
The Jasmine Festival takes place at Ryosenji to coincide with the jasmine coming into full bloom.

The Museum of Black Ship (MoBS) at Ryosenji offers a different kind of museum, with its central theme of
“Cross-cultural Communication for the Japanese: Foreign countries in the eyes of the Japanese and Japan in the eyes of foreigners.”
As well as the Blackship Collection, this museum exhibits historical artefacts and works of art,
including historical documents regarding the Tokugawa and Takeda families, writings by Yoshida Shoin, Takasugi Shinsaku, Katsu Kaishu,
and other notable figures from the Bakumatsu (last days of the Tokugawa shogunate) period,
and paintings and calligraphy that have belonged to the temple over the centuries.
The museum shop sells original merchandise with a black ship theme, as well as items related to the end of the Shogunal era.

Access

• About 15 minutes from Shimoda Hotel by car
• About 10-minute walk from Izukyu Shimoda Station