Day 13 features Satoshi Ishimoto, Site Manager at Toda Corporation, who supervised the repair and renovation work of Nara Prison as the onsite manager.
Our company was responsible for the comprehensive repair and renovation work, including seismic reinforcement and waterproofing of the entire building. The site was filled with tension. The fundamental principle of restoring an Important Cultural Property is to return everything exactly to its original state. For the wooden sections, every single piece of material must be numbered and recorded before disassembly. After seismic reinforcement is complete, each piece must be returned to its precise original position based on those records. This process requires the skills of master temple carpenters. Furthermore, even for new repair painting, a finish that evokes the passage of time is required, necessitating the expertise of specialized painters. While our company possesses the know-how for modern construction methods, the restoration of an Important Cultural Property is only possible when these specialized traditional skills are integrated. Seeing Nara Prison restored to its original Meiji-era appearance, I am struck by its sheer beauty. I want people to know that behind this beauty lies the incredible dedication of these master craftsmen.
During the construction period of just under two and a half years, Satoshi Ishimoto was stationed almost constantly at the site as the manager. (Currently, having completed the renovation, he is working on a new mission as the manager of a different site.) “I am deeply grateful for the active participation of the Ministry of Justice, the Agency for Cultural Affairs, Nara City, and various preservation committees and designers. As the site supervisor, it was a major challenge to harmonize the diverse opinions and visions of so many stakeholders into a single cohesive form,” says Mr. Ishimoto.
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