Golden Pavilion is located ant he foot of Kinugasa hill. It is a famous structure of Muromachi period (14 - 16 Century). It was originally designed as the villa of a court noble. The second owner, Yoshimitsu Ashikaga, the 3rd shogun, greatly improved it and spend the latter part of his life there in retirement from the cares of stare.
He built the Golden Pavilion and laid our the garden in 1394. his will was followed by his son as successor to change the villa into a Buddhist temple under the name of Rokuonji. It was burned down i 1950 and reconstructed in 1955.