A-bomb Dome
Before the war, the A-bomb Dome was the Hiroshima Prefecture Industrial Promotion Hall. The building was designed by the Czech architect Jan Letzel and was opened August 1915.
Made of reinforced brick and stone in the secession style, it was one of the most Western buildings in Hiroshima at that time. Many exhibitions such as prefectural produce displays. and sales, country fairs, art expositions and other events took place in the hall and it was widely used and highly thought of by the citizens of Hiroshima.
Towards the end of the war, a produce exhibition was not held and the hall began to be used as offices for the government and various semi-governmental organizations.
The building, located right at the hypocenter, was demolished and burned out, with only the frame-work of the central part of the main building remaining.
Because the top of the main building was dome-shaped, it is known as the A-bomb Dome.
As the restoration work progressed, and the evidence of the disaster began to disappear, in 1966 the citizens began to press for the preservation of the A-bomb Dome as a monument to peace.
As a result, a fund-raising campaign, initiated by the city, received very generous contributions from individuals and groups both within and outside Japan, including the U.S., Russia., England and France.
In 1967, through the application of advanced scientific techniques, the dome was successfully reinforced.
Throughout the world, it has come to be regarded as the symbol of Hiroshima.