Sumo Museum

The Sumo Museum sits within the Ryogoku Kokugikan (National Sumo Stadium) in Tokyo's Ryogoku district, the historical heartland of Japan's ancient sport. The compact museum displays rotating exhibitions of woodblock prints depicting legendary wrestlers, ceremonial aprons (kesho-mawashi) embroidered with intricate designs, and ranking charts (banzuke) handwritten in a distinctive calligraphic style. Admission is free, though space is limited and it closes during tournament days to the general public. For the full experience, time your visit around one of the three annual Tokyo tournaments (January, May, September), when the neighborhood comes alive with wrestlers walking to the arena in traditional yukata and chanko-nabe restaurants serve the hearty stew that fuels their training.