If you didn't know the best-attended exhibition in the world last year was held in Nara Prefecture, you're not alone.
Neither did the Nara National Museum, which hosted it. And neither did The Art Newspaper in London, which in March compiled what it intended as a comprehensive list of international exhibition attendances for 2007.
The little known world-beater, "Exhibition of Shosoin Treasures," consisted of a selection of Imperial Household treasures that date back some 1,300 years. They have never been shown outside of Japan, and only twice have a few pieces made the journey to Tokyo.