Kankō Historical Museum

The Kanko Historical Museum at Dazaifu Tenmangu uses 16 scenes of elaborately dressed Hakata ceramic dolls to trace the life of Sugawara Michizane, the ninth-century scholar deified here as Tenjin, patron of learning. The scenes span childhood poems to political exile, including the famous farewell to his garden plum tree that legend says uprooted itself and flew to Dazaifu after him. The museum also displays tenjin ningyo dolls from across Japan, each made in distinct regional styles, and artifacts from the shrine's more than 100 annual rituals including the Heian-costumed Jinko autumn procession.