Shuri Castle, which dates to at least the 15th century, has been restored four times since 1453, according to the Japan Cabinet Office’s website. (Keishi Koja/Stars and Stripes)
NAHA, Okinawa — Work began this week to place tiles on the roof of the fire-ravaged main building of Okinawa landmark Shuri Castle.
About 60,000 tiles made of mudstone and red clay are being placed on the roof of the castle’s Seiden, or main hall, much of which was destroyed in an October 2019 blaze, a spokeswoman for the Japan Cabinet Office’s Okinawa General Bureau said by phone Tuesday. Tile installation began Monday.
Roof work should be finished by year’s end, and reconstruction of the main hall is scheduled for completion in fall 2026, she said.
The main hall was one of seven buildings destroyed in a massive blaze that burned for more than 11 hours and made international headlines. More than 170 firefighters responded to the fire, which started in the Seiden and spread to the Hokuden, or northern wing, and Nanden, the southern wing.
Work on the main hall is expected to cost more than $75 million, the spokeswoman said. Some government officials in Japan may speak to the media only on condition of anonymity.
Tiles made of mudstone and red clay are placed on the roof of Shuri Castle's main hall in Naha, Okinawa, on July 15, 2024. (Keishi Koja/Stars and Stripes)
Tiles made of mudstone and red clay are placed on the roof of Shuri Castle's main hall in Naha, Okinawa, on July 15, 2024. (Keishi Koja/Stars and Stripes)
“This will change depending on the costs of personnel and materials,” she said. “We don’t know how much it will cost for other parts (of the castle) because we haven’t created the plans yet.”
Reconstruction began in November 2022, according to the castle’s website. Work on the main hall began in September 2023, with the frame completed in December 2023 and the wooden portion of the roof finished May 27.
Approximately $37 million had been donated to rebuild the castle as of May, according to the prefecture’s website. At least one significant donation came from Marine Corps spouse Mari Gregory, who in 2020 presented Okinawa Gov. Denny Tamaki with more than $11,000 raised in a GoFundMe campaign.
People watch from a distance as firefighters battle a blaze at Shuri Castle in Naha, Okinawa, on Oct. 31, 2019. (Stars and Stripes)
Shuri Castle, which dates to at least the 15th century, has been restored four times since 1453, according to the Japan Cabinet Office’s website. It was most recently rebuilt in 1992 following its destruction in World War II.
In 2000, UNESCO designated the castle, considered a symbol of Okinawa’s struggle to recover from the war, a World Heritage Site.
The prefecture in 2022 announced a plan to reopen within three years a portion of the tunnel system underneath the castle that served as the headquarters for Imperial Japan’s 32nd Army during World War II.
