Group led by Chugoku Shimbun applies to Japanese commission for registration of 1,532 A-bomb photos with UNESCO “Memory of the World”
Sep. 16, 2023
The Chugoku Shimbun, the Asahi Shimbun, the Mainichi Newspapers, and the Hiroshima City government have submitted a joint application for registration of 1,532 photographs of the Hiroshima atomic bombing with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) “Memory of the World” register. The application was first made domestically to the Japanese National Commission for UNESCO. Amid growing concern about the possible use of nuclear weapons and the continued aging of those who directly experienced the bombing, the aim of the application is to convey and pass on to the world the photos that bear witness to the devastation caused by the atomic bombing. The applicant group hopes to have the photos placed in the UNESCO Memory of the World register in 2025, the 80th anniversary of the atomic bombing.
The materials in the application titled “Hiroshima A-bombing documentary photographs — From under the mushroom cloud” consist of photos taken by 27 local individuals and photographers as well as one organization during the period from August 6, 1945, until the end of December of the same year. The photos document in detailed fashion the devastation that happened at that time, during which 140,000 people (with a margin of error of ± 10,000) are estimated to have died.
Among the photos taken by members of the media are those of Yoshito Matsushige, at the time a photojournalist with the Chugoku Shimbun and the only photographer to capture scenes of the horrific conditions faced by citizens on August 6. The application includes photos in the possession of the Asahi Shimbun, the Mainichi Newspapers, and Kyodo News that show the city in ruins and victims receiving aid and medical treatment. Photos of the mushroom cloud taken by local residents as well as those of people exhibiting acute symptoms of radiation exposure taken by photographers who accompanied survey teams in the city were also submitted.
The photos were selected on the basis of materials displayed at the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum, many of which are in its permanent exhibits, and from representative collections of photos. With the aim of conveying the horrific reality of nuclear weapons from the side of the country that bore the brunt of attacks with the weapons, the submitted materials do not include photos taken by the U.S. military, which focused on assessing the military effectiveness of the atomic bombing.
The Chugoku Shimbun approached the other news organizations and the Hiroshima City government, which are proprietors of the photographic negatives and prints, with a proposal for the joint application. The application was made to the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT), the agency responsible for administering the domestic registration process, in time for the August 28 deadline. The nominations will be decided in November, and UNESCO is to announce the final results sometime in 2025.
Other groups that have submitted applications for the Memory of the World register are the Association for Preservation of Literary Materials of Hiroshima, a citizens group that aims to register six handwritten manuscripts by four writers that include Sankichi Toge, a poet known for his work involving the atomic bombings, and a registration promotion council formed of the Hiroshima Prefectural government and a Tokyo-based non-profit organization led by family members of Sadako Sasaki—the young woman who inspired the establishment of the Children’s Peace Monument—which is working to register about 100 paper cranes and other materials. Both groups applied for registration jointly with the Hiroshima City government, which provides its support to all three of the groups aiming to have application items registered, including the documentary photos of the Hiroshima atomic bombing.
(Originally published on September 16, 2023)
The materials in the application titled “Hiroshima A-bombing documentary photographs — From under the mushroom cloud” consist of photos taken by 27 local individuals and photographers as well as one organization during the period from August 6, 1945, until the end of December of the same year. The photos document in detailed fashion the devastation that happened at that time, during which 140,000 people (with a margin of error of ± 10,000) are estimated to have died.
Among the photos taken by members of the media are those of Yoshito Matsushige, at the time a photojournalist with the Chugoku Shimbun and the only photographer to capture scenes of the horrific conditions faced by citizens on August 6. The application includes photos in the possession of the Asahi Shimbun, the Mainichi Newspapers, and Kyodo News that show the city in ruins and victims receiving aid and medical treatment. Photos of the mushroom cloud taken by local residents as well as those of people exhibiting acute symptoms of radiation exposure taken by photographers who accompanied survey teams in the city were also submitted.
The photos were selected on the basis of materials displayed at the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum, many of which are in its permanent exhibits, and from representative collections of photos. With the aim of conveying the horrific reality of nuclear weapons from the side of the country that bore the brunt of attacks with the weapons, the submitted materials do not include photos taken by the U.S. military, which focused on assessing the military effectiveness of the atomic bombing.
The Chugoku Shimbun approached the other news organizations and the Hiroshima City government, which are proprietors of the photographic negatives and prints, with a proposal for the joint application. The application was made to the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT), the agency responsible for administering the domestic registration process, in time for the August 28 deadline. The nominations will be decided in November, and UNESCO is to announce the final results sometime in 2025.
Other groups that have submitted applications for the Memory of the World register are the Association for Preservation of Literary Materials of Hiroshima, a citizens group that aims to register six handwritten manuscripts by four writers that include Sankichi Toge, a poet known for his work involving the atomic bombings, and a registration promotion council formed of the Hiroshima Prefectural government and a Tokyo-based non-profit organization led by family members of Sadako Sasaki—the young woman who inspired the establishment of the Children’s Peace Monument—which is working to register about 100 paper cranes and other materials. Both groups applied for registration jointly with the Hiroshima City government, which provides its support to all three of the groups aiming to have application items registered, including the documentary photos of the Hiroshima atomic bombing.
(Originally published on September 16, 2023)
