Several important artworks from Kōya-san's temples are collected here, most notably some Heian-era wooden sculptures of the Buddha and Fudō Myō-ō originally from Kongōbu-ji. Other works include scroll paintings depicting the life of Kōbō Daishi.
The museum is in the centre of town, near the Garan. The original wing, built in 1921, is Japan's oldest wooden museum, and without heating gets quite chilly in winter.