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This was once the private estate of Tobu Railway president Kaichiro Nezu, who bequeathed it together with his extensive collection of Japanese and East Asian art to create this very refined private museum. With additional donations from private collectors, the museum's 7,400 pieces include ceramics, paintings, calligraphy, sculpture, lacquerware, metalwork, bamboo crafts, and textiles, including seven items designated National Treasures. The museum is most famous for its objects related to the tea ceremony (Nezu was an enthusiastic practitioner of the tea ceremony), ancient Chinese bronzes, and a pair of folding screens called "Irises," a National Treasure from the 18th century by Korin Ogata. What you'll actually see at the museum, however, is determined by the current exhibition, with displays changed several times a year. Be sure to stroll through the museum's Japanese garden with a pond and tea houses, an unexpected oasis in central Tokyo, followed, perhaps with coffee or tea at the glass-enclosed NEZUCAFE.