Tateyama Museum is a museum of the nature and the history of Tateyama, specializing in the traditional Tateyama Mountain Buddhism that died out years ago. The museum was intentionally divided into two building at separate locations; Tenjikan hall, meaning exhibition hall, at the center of town; and Youboh-kan hall, built on the historic site of Onbado hall at the outskirts of town. From Tenjikan hall visitors trace the historic path connecting the historic sites on the way to Youboh-kan hall, to experience the pilgrimage of Tateyama Mountain Buddhism. As it were the entire town of Ashikuradera town acts as another museum of Tateyama's history.
Tenjikan hall is intended as the central facility of the museum, and the main gate to whole project. The first floor consists of entrance hall, special exhibition room/guidance hall that can be divided by movable partitions, and staff office. The second and third floors are allocated for permanent exhibition rooms. At first, visitors go all the way up the central staircase to the third floor, then descends the spiral ramp as they see the exhibition regarding the Tateyama Mountain Buddhism. The building consists of the central pyramid roof with skylight, and the spiral volume descending from the top, with an aluminum cube with opening of Tateyama Mandala style inserted into the exterior spiral facade. The interior is finished with white stucco and Japanese paper, and the exterior is finished with thick fumigated brick tiles and iron-oxide-red stucco in some parts. The pyramid roof is finished with Gensho-seki slates and the spiral part with zinc sheets.