Nihonbashi Mitsukoshi

photo by 663highland · CC BY 2.5

Lions from 1914, requisitioned for the war in '41, saved and found again in a shrine.

At the main entrance, two bronze lions from 1914, modelled on those in Trafalgar Square, were requisitioned in 1941 for war metal: they escaped being melted down and were found after the war in a shrine, then put back in their place. Inside, an American pipe organ from 1930, moved to the central hall in 1935, is played live on some days of the week.

Mitsukoshi in Nihonbashi, opened in 1904, is Japan's first department store; the present building, from 1914, has been an Important Cultural Property since 2016. The pipe organ, a ward cultural property since 2009, arrived from the United States in 1930.

ℹ️ Open 10:00–19:00 (different hours for the restaurant and the food floor), free entry: it is a working shop, not a museum. Live organ concerts on Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday at 10:30, 12:00 and 15:00.

🚉 Mitsukoshimae · 1 min walk

Sources: mistore.jp · mistore.jp

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