Atomic Bomb Dome to be listed as special historic site

Asahi
June 21, 2025

The Atomic Bomb Dome in Hiroshima’s Naka Ward. Photo taken on April 13, 2023 (Asahi photo

The government will designate the iconic Atomic Bomb Dome in Hiroshima as a special historic site to ensure its preservation to mark the 80th anniversary in August of the city’s atomic bombing.

The three-story, Western-style brick building featuring a skeletal domed roof is already a World Heritage site.

Official said the Council for Cultural Affairs submitted its recommendation to the culture minister on June 20.

Located 160 meters from ground zero, the interior was gutted in the firestorm that followed atomic detonation but miraculously the outer walls escaped collapse.

In 1995, a full half-century after the bombing, it dawned on officialdom that greater efforts were needed to preserve historic war sites. In 1996, the building was registered as a World Heritage site.

The recommendation for an upgrade in designation to special historic site was triggered by the publication earlier this year of an in-depth report on preservation and maintenance work carried out by city authorities on five occasions between 1967 and 2020 to keep the structure upright.

In recent years, five sites in Nagasaki and six in Hiroshima, including the Atomic Bomb Dome, have been designated as historic sites.

The report noted that the Atomic Bomb Dome stands as a “symbol” of mankind’s first use of atomic weapons.

The building was called the Hiroshima Prefectural Commercial Exhibition Hall when it was completed in 1915.