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East building of Peace Memorial Museum reopens to public, enables visitors to gain deeper understanding of atomic bombing

by Kanako Noda, Staff Writer

On April 26, the east building of the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum was reopened to the public after being closed for two years and eight months to pursue major renovations to its permanent exhibits. Making use of the latest imaging and information technology, the museum seeks to convey the inhumanity of nuclear weapons and the history of Hiroshima before and after the atomic bombing. On the same day that the east wing was reopened, the main building was closed for renovations and will reopen to the public in July 2018.

At a ceremony that took place before the reopening of the east wing, Hiroshima Mayor Kazumi Matsui spoke and said that he hopes visitors will reflect on the fact that the atomic bombing instantly destroyed the way of life people knew and also gain a deeper understanding of the inhumanity and horror of nuclear weapons, which he called an absolute evil. He then cut the ceremonial ribbon of the reopening with Kenji Shiga, the director of the museum. When the museum opened at 8:30 a.m., tourists and students on school trips streamed inside and looked keenly at the displays and panels.

In the east wing, a newly-installed exhibit called “White Panorama” employs a model of the city and a computer graphics presentation, lasting 1.5 minutes, that shows how the way of life of Hiroshima residents was instantly decimated when the atomic bomb exploded. Computer terminals, called “Media Tables,” have also been added and visitors can make use of these computers to find out further information related to the exhibits. These things are intended to help visitors gain a broader knowledge of the atomic bomb and its effects.

At the same time, the main building, which houses victims’ personal belongings, panels related to the atomic bombing, and items that were exposed to the atomic bomb, is designed to enable visitors to appreciate the human lives that were lost. While the main building is closed, some of the artifacts that had been exhibited there, including clothes that the A-bomb victims were wearing at the time of the bombing and a boy’s tricycle, are being displayed temporarily in the special exhibition room of the east building. The City of Hiroshima is undertaking a review of the exhibits in the main building in conjunction with seismic reinforcement work, which will continue until the summer of 2019.

(Originally published on April 27, 2017)

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