A five-storied pagoda, designated as a national treasure, is seen at the UNESCO World Heritage temple Kohfukuji in the city of Nara, in western Japan, on Feb. 20, 2020. (Mainichi/Keiko Shioji)

NARA -- A five-storied pagoda designated as a national treasure at Kohfukuji temple, a UNESCO World Heritage site in this Japanese ancient capital city, is set to undergo large-scale repairs for the first time in about 120 years.

The Nara Prefectural Government announced on Feb. 20 that it had appropriated about 600,000 yen in subsidies for inspections of the structure in its initial draft budget for fiscal 2020. The checks will take three years and the repairs are planned for after fiscal 2023.

The 50.1-meter-tall pagoda was built in 730 in the Nara period by Empress Komyo. The structure has been burned down and rebuilt five times and the existing pagoda was completed around 1426 in the Muromachi period. The pagoda's most recent large-scale repairs, in which the roof on the upper layers was restored, were carried out from 1900 to 1902 in the Meiji era. Damage to plaster on the walls and other parts is now starting to show, according to the temple.

Ryoshun Tagawa, head steward at the temple, commented, "These are necessary repairs to leave the pagoda for future generations. We'll do our best."

(Japanese original by Keiko Shioji and Tatsu Shingu, Nara Bureau)