Osaka Castle

Osaka Castle is in Osaka, a big city in Japan.

It has a tall tower with curved roofs. Big stone walls and water called moats go all around it.

Osaka Castle sits on a hill in the city of Osaka, in Japan. Its main tower rises above the trees, with tall office buildings all around.

The castle is surrounded by stone walls, moats and a park of 106 hectares, full of cherry, apricot and plum trees. Inside the main tower is a museum about the castle's history.

The Japan National Tourism Organization calls Osaka Castle arguably Osaka's most prominent landmark. It sits on a hill above many modern office buildings, inside 106 hectares of park with cherry, apricot and plum trees and an outer moat.

The castle's own museum explains that the stone walls and moats, and old buildings such as the Ōtemon Gate and the Tamon and Sengan turrets, all date from the Tokugawa period or later. The area is a national Special Historic Site, and most of the old buildings are Important Cultural Properties.

Inside the main tower is a museum with lots of old things.

At the top, visitors can look out over the whole city!

The people of Osaka gave money to rebuild the main tower in 1931. Since then, it has been a museum about the castle, Toyotomi Hideyoshi and the history of the time.

The museum holds more than 10,000 historical objects. Visitors can climb the stairs or take an elevator up to a lookout at the top for a view across the city.

The main tower was rebuilt in 1931 with donations from Osaka's citizens and has served as a museum since then, collecting objects connected with Toyotomi Hideyoshi, his era and the history of Osaka Castle and changing its displays from time to time.

The Japan National Tourism Organization says the museum holds over 10,000 historical artifacts, and that visitors can climb the stairs or take the elevator to an observation deck at the top for a panoramic view of the city.

In this photo, the castle tower stands among tall glass buildings.

In front are big stone walls, green trees and a moat.

This photo was taken on 5 September 2009. The white and green main tower stands among tall office towers. In front are high stone walls with a moat at their foot, and a long building with gray tiled roofs runs along the top of a wall.

The park around the castle is a place where people from Osaka jog, cycle and relax. Visitors can also board sightseeing boats for another view of the castle.

The photograph (5 September 2009, by 663highland) looks across the castle grounds: the main tower in the middle distance among office towers, and in front a corner of the high stone walls above a moat, with tile-roofed buildings along the top of the walls and trees all around.

The Japan National Tourism Organization describes the surrounding park as a place where Osakans jog, cycle and relax, with picnic areas, cherry blossom viewing in spring and gozabune sightseeing boats.