Japanese Museum Devoted Entirely to Rocks That Look Like Human Faces

Rocks that look like human faces are on display at Chichibu Chinsekikan (Chichibu museum of rare rocks) in Chichibu; at center is a rock with a name indicating that it is an old man shouting to look for his missing dentures (Kyodo via AP Images)

The world has no shortage of strange museums and galleries, but perhaps the strangest is the Chichibu Chinsekikan (translated as “hall of curious rocks”), a Japanese museum dedicated to rocks that look like human faces.

This museum, located two hours northwest of Tokyo, houses over 1,700 of these rocks (also known as “jinmenseki“), which were collected over 50 years by museum founder Shozo Hayama. His wife Yoshiko currently runs the museum, following Shozo’s death in 2010.

Yoshiko Hayama, curator of Chichibu Chinsekikan (Chichibu museum of rare rocks), holds an exhibit at the museum in Chichibu (Kyodo via AP Images)

As for the rocks themselves, they’re fascinating. A few of them resemble celebrities (Elvis being a prominent example), video game and movie characters, and other notable pop culture icons. There’s even a Jesus rock displayed on a wooden cross. In addition, many of the the non-celebrity rocks don’t have names, and visitors are occasionally invited to name them.

An exhibit titled ‘Elvis Presley,’ a rock that looks like a man sporting a pompadour hairstyle (Kyodo via AP Images)

If you can read Japanese, check out the museum’s website here. It’s a 10-minute walk from Kagemori station if you’re ever in the area, but be warned: the museum has highly irregular hours.