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is
a Zen Buddhist
temple in Kyoto, Japan. It
is
one
of
the
most
popular
buildings
in
Kyoto,
attracting
many
visitors
annually. It
is
designated
as
a
National
Special
Historic
Site,
a
National
Special
Landscape
and
is
one
of
17
locations
making
up
the Historic
Monuments
of
Ancient
Kyoto which
are World
Heritage
Sites.
The
site
of
Kinkaku-ji
was
originally
a
villa
called Kitayama-dai (北山第),
belonging
to
a
powerful
statesman, Saionji
Kintsune. Kinkaku-ji's
history
dates
to
1397,
when
the
villa
was
purchased
from
the
Saionji
family
by shōgun Ashikaga
Yoshimitsu and
transformed
into
the
Kinkaku-ji
complex. When
Yoshimitsu
died
the
building
was
converted
into
a Zen temple
by
his
son,
according
to
his
wishes.
During
the Ōnin
war (1467–1477),
all
of
the
buildings
in
the
complex
aside
from
the
pavilion
were
burned
down.
On
2
July
1950,
at
2:30
am,
the
pavilion
was
burned
down
by
a
22-year-old
novice
monk,
Hayashi
Yoken,
who
then
attempted
suicide
on
the
Daimon-ji
hill
behind
the
building.
He
survived,
and
was
subsequently
taken
into
custody.
The
monk
was
sentenced
to
seven
years
in
prison,
but
was
released
because
of
mental
illnesses
(persecution
complex and schizophrenia)
on
29
September
1955;
he
died
of tuberculosis in
March
1956. During
the
fire,
the
original
statue
of
Ashikaga
Yoshimitsu
was
lost
to
the
flames
(now
restored).
A
fictionalized
version
of
these
events
is
at
the
center
of Yukio
Mishima's
1956
book The
Temple
of
the
Golden
Pavilion, and
another
in
the
ballet RAkU.
The
present
pavilion
structure
dates
from
1955,
when
it
was
rebuilt. The
pavilion
is
three
stories
high, 12.5
meters
(40
feet) in
height.[page needed] The
reconstruction
is
said
to
be
a
copy
close
to
the
original,
although
some
doubt
such
an
extensive
gold-leaf
coating
was
used
on
the
original
structure.[page needed] In
1984
the
coating
of
Japanese
lacquer
was
found
to
be
a
little
decayed
and
a
new
coating,
as
well
as
gilding
with
gold-leaf,
much
thicker
than
the
original
coatings
(0.5 µm instead
of
0.1 µm),
was
completed
in
1987.
Additionally,
the
interior
of
the
building,
including
the
paintings
and
Yoshimitsu's
statue,
were
also
restored.
Finally,
the
roof
was
restored
in
2003.
The
name
Kinkaku
is
derived
from
the
gold
leaf
that
the
pavilion
is
covered
in.
Gold
was
an
important
addition
to
the
pavilion
because
of
its
underlying
meaning.
The
gold
employed
was
intended
to
mitigate
and
purify
any
pollution
or
negative
thoughts
and
feelings
towards
death.[page needed] Other
than
the
symbolic
meaning
behind
the
gold
leaf,
the
Muromachi
period
heavily
relied
on
visual
excesses.[page needed] With
the
focus
on
the
Golden
Pavilion,
the
way
that
the
structure
is
mainly
covered
in
that
material
creates
an
impression
that
stands
out
because
of
the
sunlight
reflecting
and
the
effect
the
reflection
creates
on
the
pond.
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