Photo/Illutration Lumber is carried on a trailer in the “Kiyari procession” before a groundbreaking ceremony for restoration work of Shuri-jo castle’s Seiden main hall in Naha on Nov. 3. (Minako Yoshimoto)

NAHA--Restoration work is moving full steam ahead on the Seiden main hall of the landmark Shuri-jo castle, which burned down three years ago.

Around 240 people, including government officials and local residents, attended a groundbreaking ceremony for the restoration work at the site of the hall on Nov. 3.

Okinawa Governor Denny Tamaki said the rebuilding work on Seiden was “a big step toward realizing the wishes of many people at home and abroad for the (castle’s) restoration.”

The new Seiden, which will be fire-resistant, is expected to be completed in autumn 2026.

The castle was the center of politics and culture of the Ryukyu Kingdom, as Okinawa Prefecture was formerly called.

It has repeatedly burned down and been rebuilt. The castle was also destroyed in the 1945 Battle of Okinawa in the final stages of World War II.

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People in traditional attire in the “Kiyari procession,” a ritual to carry timber ahead of restoration work on Shuri-jo castle's main hall, in Naha on Nov. 3 (Minako Yoshimoto)

Seiden was restored in 1992, 20 years after Okinawa Prefecture was returned to Japan from the United States.

However, six buildings of the castle, including Seiden, the south hall and a guardhouse—all spanning around 4,000 square meters--completely burned down in the early hours of Oct. 31, 2019.

The first restoration work in 30 years for the castle coincides with the 50th anniversary of Okinawa’s return to Japan.

Before the ceremony, the “Kiyari procession” was conducted to pray for the successful restoration work.

The procession is a ritual inherited from the days of the Ryukyu Kingdom, which existed for about 450 years until 1879.

The procession was last conducted in 1989.

“Kiyari” means carrying lumber and is the word used by people hauling loads for construction work.

In the procession, people donning traditional attire pulled a trailer carrying a piece of lumber about 9 meters long, 1 meter in diameter and weighing around 4 tons.

The 98-year-old wood came from “quercus miyagii,” a species of oak native to the Ryukyu Islands.

It was logged in Kunigami village in the northern part of Okinawa’s main island, around 80 kilometers from Naha.

The oak is believed to have been used to construct part of the castle during the Ryukyu Kingdom.

In this restoration work, the oak will be used as a beam of the room in Seiden where the king’s chair, called “Usasuka,” will sit.

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