Tourism Yamato Museum to undergo major renovation

The facility opened in 2005 as the Kure Maritime Museum, but limited space meant that many items linked to the Yamato had to be stored in three other locations in Kure, including an abandoned school. "Historical records related to the Imperial Japanese Navy and the Yamato remain hidden across various parts of the nation," said Kazushige Todaka, the museum director. "We can't think about adding to our collection, however, if we have no place to store the items." The main pillar of the renovation project will be the construction of a large warehouse where visitors can examine the weapons and equipment used on the battleship. The project will cost about 6.8 billion yen ($46 million). The plans call for completing renovations for existing facilities by fiscal 2025 and having the new warehouse facility open to the public in 2027. The new facility will have a floor space of about 2,500 square meters and will be located west of the main museum building near the parking lot. About 35 large items--including torpedoes, mines, propellers, the sub-guns of the battleship Mutsu and the large testing equipment used when the Yamato was being built--will be displayed at the special warehouse, where experts will conduct guided tours. The lathe, measuring about 17 meters in length and weighing about 160 tons, will be ready for display to the public from March 2023.

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The museum's signature one-tenth scale Yamato model — 26.3 meters long— looks new again after a repainting of the hull and minor scratches were repaired. The chrysanthemum crest on the bow was also resized to about two-thirds of its previous dimensions, reflecting findings from more recent research. Exhibits on the third floor have been extensively replaced, with the museum adding many more full-size items such as aircraft engines and propellers as well as steam engines. The number of displayed objects has increased by roughly 300 to about 2,100 in total. On the first floor, digital displays will project images of records, including rosters of crew members who died in the war, personal memoirs and letters.

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