Kamigamo Jinja lies up against the northern hills, in a quiet
residential area of Kyoto, and is therefore often less-crowded
than shrines in the city centre, though no less impressive. The
shrine is a designated UNESCO World Heritage site, and most of
the shrine buildings are classified as Important Cultural
Properties. The shrine was established in the 7th Century, a
hundred years before Kyoto was founded. When the Imperial
capital moved to Heiankyo (present day Kyoto) the Kamigamo
Shrine, along with its sister shrine Shimogamo Shrine, enjoyed
imperial patronage and support that has continued to the
present. Located on the banks of the Kamo River, its formal name
is the Kamo-wakeikazuchi Shrine. Kamo Wake-ikazuchi, the god of
thunder is enshrined at Kamigamo Shrine. One approaches the
shrine across a large open space that is lawn, rather than the
more usual gravel, and this gives it the feel of a park. The
most unusual thing about the shrine are the 2 large sand cones
that flank the entrance to the main shri