Originally built in the 8th Century (and rebuilt several times since) Tōdai-ji in Nara was, until quite recently, the largest wooden building in the world. It's 57 metres long and 50 metres wide - but even that is only two-thirds of the size of the building which was there before it, but which was destroyed in a fire. Inside, one of the pillars has a hole in it, and it is apparently good luck to squeeze yourself through this gap - meaning this particular incarnation's demise will almost certainly be due to a pillar finally giving-way after the hole has been slowly eroded by the constant stream of school trips.
