31 October marks 5 years since the conflagration at Shuri Castle, with restoration centered on the Palace Hall and its accouterments. (31oc24)

Splendor of Okinawa: Mexican Petunia, Gushikawa RC Church, 27oc24


31 October marks 5 years since Shuri Castle in Naha was burned to the ground in a conflagration. The restoration of the Palace Hall began in November of 2022, with the frame raising completed in May of this year. The 3 story wooden building (with a height from ground up of 18 meters) is all but complete. Completion is targeted for 2026. The Nation and Okinawa Prefecture are jointly progressing with the roof tiling  and other accouterments.


Shuri Castle was constructed in the middle of the 14th century, but has been reconstructed after burning down from time to time. In the conflagration of 2019, the 9 buildings, including the Palace Hall, reconstructed in the so called 1992 Heisei Restoration, were burned to the ground. In this restoration, knowledge newly gained from the analysis of old photos and materials will be reflected.


A difference in this restoration will be the relocation of the wood-carved  decorative pair of Main Floor (Ryukyuan: Usasuka) Dragon Pillars up  to the second floor to adorn the Royal Throne in the Palace Hall, where they will be screwed in at the base for display.


Moreover, the place of origin of the distinctive vermillion pigment used for painting the Palace Hall has been confirmed. By mixing red iron oxide, produced with bacteria from around Kushi in Nago in Okinawa Island’s north,  with wood oil and lacquer, paint has been produced for the outer walls of the Palace Hall. According to the Okinawa General affairs Bureau of the Cabinet,  the paint will be very close to the subdued red used during the era of the Ryukyu Kingdom.


Based on the concept of visible restoration touted by the National Government, the pace of construction can be studied from a space separated by glass.


Governor Denny Tamaki, who inspected the site in June, stated, “Now I can only see an image of Shuri. I’d like to observe the progress, feet on the ground, walking through the reconstruction.”


Original Japanese article: JIJI.COM., published Thursday 31 October 2024 at 00:11.

https://news.yahoo.co.jp/articles/8a87f88cd872dd8f6d908696a622d39c6f2295ce


Denny in the News:

Denny Tamaki is the governor of Okinawa Prefecture in Japan. Although Okinawa is important as an international tourist destination and a key element in strategic US Military Forces, its governor receives very little coverage in the Japanese press and almost none in the English language media. 


This blog hopes to  translate one news article a day on the governor.  It is unsponsored and unauthorized. The translator simply hopes to improve his skills and perhaps give the governor an English speaking audience. 


Any suggestion on improving my translation will be gratefully accepted. However, please leave political comments for another forum.


Where they occur, words and phrases in Ryukyuan (the Okinawan language) are rendered in italics and translated in parentheses. Names  whose readings are uncertain are rendered as Name (=Kanji?) as in Nagayuki (=長行?). Any corrections in such instances would be gratefully appreciated.

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