Municipalities hosting ancient castles around Japan are under siege as aging castle towers restored in the post-World War II economic boom are in desperate need of replacement or refurbishment.
While some localities are ready to renovate existing concrete castle towers, others are hoping to fund the much pricier recreation of the wooden structures that originally stood long ago.
During his campaign for Nagoya mayor in 2009, Mayor Takashi Kawamura vowed to replace the concrete main tower of the city’s landmark Nagoya Castle with a more authentic wooden structure.
Photo: Reuters / Kyodo
照片：路透／Kyodo
“We should replace the tower with something we will be proud of,” Kawamura said.
Nagoya Castle, originally built in the early Edo Period （(1603-1867), was restored in 1959 after being destroyed by fire in an air raid by US bombers in May 1945.
(Liberty Times)
隨著在二次世界大戰後的經濟繁榮之際所修復的老舊（日式城堡的）天守閣（譯註：日式城堡塔樓）如今亟需更新或整修，有古代城堡坐落於當地的日本各地城市當局，形同面臨危城困境。
儘管有部分地方政府準備翻新現有的混凝土天守閣，其他城市卻希望能把錢用在費用較高、讓多年前矗立於此的木造結構天守閣原地再現。
名古屋市長河村隆之在二零零九年競選時曾誓言，要以更具美感的木造結構，取代該市地標名古屋城的混凝土造天守閣。
「我們應該以能讓我們引以為傲的東西來取代（現有的）天守閣，」河村隆之說。
名古屋城原本建於江戶時代（1603-1867）早期，一九四五年五月在美軍轟炸機空襲引發的大火中被焚毀，一九五九年修復。
（自由時報／翻譯：張沛元）
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