Japan Deer Nara Park Sunny Day Royalty-Free Stock Image

Nara Park 奈良公園, Nara Kōen is a public park located in the city of Nara, Japan, at the foot of Mount Wakakusa. Established in 1880 it is one of the oldest parks in Japan. Administratively, the park is under the control of Nara Prefecture. The park is one of the `Places of Scenic Beauty` designated by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology MEXT. Over 1,200 wild sika deer シカ or 鹿 shika freely roaming around in the park are also under designation of MEXT, classified as natural treasure. While the official size of the park is about 502 hectares 1,240 acres, the area including the grounds of Tōdai-ji, Kōfuku-ji, and Kasuga Shrine, which are either on the edge or surrounded by Nara Park, is as large as 660 hectares 1,600 acres.