Wristwatch displaying A-bombing time sold for 3.7 million yen
Feb. 24, 2024
by Kana Kobayashi, Staff Writer
A wristwatch displaying the time of 8:15 a.m., the moment the atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, was being listed for sale in an online auction hosted by a United States auction house. On February 23, it was sold for 24,890 dollars (approximately 3.7 million yen). The total amount including fees reached 31,113 dollars (approximately 4.7 million yen). The winning bidder is unknown.
Toshiyuki Mimaki, 81, chair of the Hiroshima Prefectural Confederation of A-bomb Sufferers Organizations (Hiroshima Hidankyo) made a critical comment, saying, “It seems like the devastation caused by the atomic bombing is being used as a tool for profit. I can’t forgive it.” On February 20, the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN), a non-governmental organization (NGO), sent a letter written by Executive Director Melissa Parke, requesting the auction be withdrawn.
The auction house is RR Auction in the U.S. state of Massachusetts. According to the house’s website, the wristwatch was picked up by a British soldier who was dispatched to Hiroshima, and it was auctioned off in the United Kingdom in 2015 and passed on to another individual. It is unclear what kind of appraisal was used to determine its authenticity as an atomic bombing-related artifact.
(Originally published on February 24, 2024)
A wristwatch displaying the time of 8:15 a.m., the moment the atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, was being listed for sale in an online auction hosted by a United States auction house. On February 23, it was sold for 24,890 dollars (approximately 3.7 million yen). The total amount including fees reached 31,113 dollars (approximately 4.7 million yen). The winning bidder is unknown.
Toshiyuki Mimaki, 81, chair of the Hiroshima Prefectural Confederation of A-bomb Sufferers Organizations (Hiroshima Hidankyo) made a critical comment, saying, “It seems like the devastation caused by the atomic bombing is being used as a tool for profit. I can’t forgive it.” On February 20, the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN), a non-governmental organization (NGO), sent a letter written by Executive Director Melissa Parke, requesting the auction be withdrawn.
The auction house is RR Auction in the U.S. state of Massachusetts. According to the house’s website, the wristwatch was picked up by a British soldier who was dispatched to Hiroshima, and it was auctioned off in the United Kingdom in 2015 and passed on to another individual. It is unclear what kind of appraisal was used to determine its authenticity as an atomic bombing-related artifact.
(Originally published on February 24, 2024)
