This shrine is the oldest and most important shrine in Japan, commonly agreed to have been built in 4 BCE. It is dedicated to the sun goddess Amaterasu, from whom the Imperial Family is said to have descended. The legend goes that the daughter of the Emperor established the shrine after searching for 20 years for a permanent place to worship Amaterasu. Ise Grand Shrine is a shrine complex with several shrines surrounding it. There are two main shrines, the Inner Shrine and the Outer Shrine, that are six kilometers apart. Access to the public is strictly limited, and the High Priest or Priestess must be descended from the Imperial Family; it is said the Sacred Mirror, one of the three treasures given to the Imperial Family by Amaterasu, is in them. These shrines are some of the few Shinto shrines that exist today before the introduction of Buddhism, and essentially show Shinto in its purest form.
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