To provide a vibration damping device capable of damping relative horizontal displacement of an upper structure and a lower structure by effectively absorbing vibration energy in earthquake, in a state of being free from distortion in recovering the shape, and reducing burden on the environment.

A steel rod is projected downward from the upper structure 12, a steel block 32 is projected upward from the lower structure 10 in a state of being horizontally overlapped to a tip end part of the steel rod 30 at its tip end part, and the tip end part of the steel rod 30 is brought into contact with the tip end part of the block 32 and elastically deformed in relative horizontal displacement of the upper structure 12 and the lower structure 10 in earthquake, and then further separated over the tip end part of the block 32.