A-bombed remains of former Nakajima district in Peace Memorial Park opened to public for first time
Jul. 8, 2019
(by Kyosuke Mizukawa, Staff Writer)
On July 7, the City of Hiroshima opened to the public the excavation site of the former Nakajima district, which is located to the north of the east building of the Peace Memorial Museum in the Peace Memorial Park in Naka Ward. Although the excavation work is still proceeding, the city held an on-site explanatory meeting, in which some 250 people took part. On the same day, the city presented a plan to expand the excavation site toward the east to an advisory panel of experts, and the plan was subsequently approved.
The excavation site, which is located to the north of the museum’s east building and is usually surrounded by fencing, was opened to the public for the first time. The area is about 25 square meters and is located to the west of the former Tenjin-machi-suji area, where many shops and private homes once stood prior to the atomic bombing. The excavation site has been dug to a depth of about 60 to 90 centimeters.
On July 7, staff from the Hiroshima City Cultural Foundation, which has been carrying out excavation research since May 2019, on commission by the city, gave an explanation of what are assumed to be the remains of a drawing room with tatami mats and a mud wall belonging to an unearthed wooden house. The participants looked carefully at the remains of the burned rush grass and pieces of wood that appeared to be part of charred tatami mat floors and floor boards, as well as layers of burned soil that had been part of a collapsed wall and had changed to a reddish brown color as a result of exposure to intense heat.
A-bomb damaged roof tiles and other unearthed items were also on display. Riko Nakahara, 12, a sixth grader who now lives in India and has returned to Hiroshima temporarily with her family, said, “The burnt ruins of the tatami mat floor, which is still used in Japanese homes today, enabled me to imagine how the atomic bomb destroyed the daily lives of everyone living in this area and killed many people.”
The City of Hiroshima is planning to open and display the A-bombed remains to the public on a daily basis by fiscal year 2020. On July 7, the city also held an on-site gathering to listen to the comments and opinions of A-bomb survivors and experts regarding the exhibition and maintenance of the unearthed A-bombed ruins. The city proposed a plan to dig about 25 square meters further to the east of the current excavation research area and this plan was approved. The purpose of the new excavation work is to locate the boundary between the former Tenjin-machi-suji area and the unearthed wooden building, and the city hopes to open the excavation site to the public so that visitors can see what the former townscape looked like before the atomic bombing, in which many houses stood on both sides of the street.
Among the unearthed items are charred straw and lumber that have badly deteriorated, and some committee members have urged the city to swiftly consider the possible preservation of these items. In the meantime, the city will refill the excavation site for the Peace Memorial Ceremony to be held on August 6, and after the ceremony, it will resume its research efforts.
(Originally published on July 8, 2019)
On July 7, the City of Hiroshima opened to the public the excavation site of the former Nakajima district, which is located to the north of the east building of the Peace Memorial Museum in the Peace Memorial Park in Naka Ward. Although the excavation work is still proceeding, the city held an on-site explanatory meeting, in which some 250 people took part. On the same day, the city presented a plan to expand the excavation site toward the east to an advisory panel of experts, and the plan was subsequently approved.
The excavation site, which is located to the north of the museum’s east building and is usually surrounded by fencing, was opened to the public for the first time. The area is about 25 square meters and is located to the west of the former Tenjin-machi-suji area, where many shops and private homes once stood prior to the atomic bombing. The excavation site has been dug to a depth of about 60 to 90 centimeters.
On July 7, staff from the Hiroshima City Cultural Foundation, which has been carrying out excavation research since May 2019, on commission by the city, gave an explanation of what are assumed to be the remains of a drawing room with tatami mats and a mud wall belonging to an unearthed wooden house. The participants looked carefully at the remains of the burned rush grass and pieces of wood that appeared to be part of charred tatami mat floors and floor boards, as well as layers of burned soil that had been part of a collapsed wall and had changed to a reddish brown color as a result of exposure to intense heat.
A-bomb damaged roof tiles and other unearthed items were also on display. Riko Nakahara, 12, a sixth grader who now lives in India and has returned to Hiroshima temporarily with her family, said, “The burnt ruins of the tatami mat floor, which is still used in Japanese homes today, enabled me to imagine how the atomic bomb destroyed the daily lives of everyone living in this area and killed many people.”
The City of Hiroshima is planning to open and display the A-bombed remains to the public on a daily basis by fiscal year 2020. On July 7, the city also held an on-site gathering to listen to the comments and opinions of A-bomb survivors and experts regarding the exhibition and maintenance of the unearthed A-bombed ruins. The city proposed a plan to dig about 25 square meters further to the east of the current excavation research area and this plan was approved. The purpose of the new excavation work is to locate the boundary between the former Tenjin-machi-suji area and the unearthed wooden building, and the city hopes to open the excavation site to the public so that visitors can see what the former townscape looked like before the atomic bombing, in which many houses stood on both sides of the street.
Among the unearthed items are charred straw and lumber that have badly deteriorated, and some committee members have urged the city to swiftly consider the possible preservation of these items. In the meantime, the city will refill the excavation site for the Peace Memorial Ceremony to be held on August 6, and after the ceremony, it will resume its research efforts.
(Originally published on July 8, 2019)
