By AYA NAGATANI/ Staff Writer
October 14, 2020 at 07:10 JST
The tower doesn't quite scrape the skyline like the 59-meter-high main keep of Edo Castle once did, but the miniature version of it now at Tokyo's Imperial Palace is still nothing to sneeze at.
The replica of the castle tower built in the 17th century, including the stone wall that supports it, is about 2 meters high, just one-30th the size of the original, believed to be the biggest one ever built in Japan.
But if you catch yourself drifting back in time while gazing at it, it's all thanks to the Imperial Household Agency's attention to detail.
The agency spent about two years from October 2017 on building the miniature and "recreated the keep as authentically as possible,” an agency official said. “We hope it will enable visitors to reflect on the time back then.”
The replica is on show at a new rest area in the Honmaru main compound in the East Gardens of the palace in the capital’s Chiyoda Ward.
The Honmaru area was once the center of the castle, and the keep was built three times, during the Keicho, Genna and Kanei eras of the Edo Period (1603-1867).
The agency decided to recreate the keep constructed in the Kanei era since many records were available, allowing it to conduct sufficient background research on the structure.
The new rest area was constructed specifically for exhibiting the miniature.
It was initially scheduled to go on display in March, but that was pushed back to Sept. 29 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The castle replica is on permanent display while the East Gardens are open to the public. Visitors to the new rest area can view the replica from 9 a.m. through 4 p.m. this month, but no entry is allowed after 3:45 p.m. Entry will be restricted at times when the venue becomes crowded.
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A miniature replica of Edo Castle’s main keep is shown to the media at a new rest area in the Honmaru main compound in the Imperial Palace in Tokyo on Sept. 28. (Aya Nagatani)
