A long red-brick front facing the palace: the station that gave modern Tokyo a grand front door.
At a glance
The Marunouchi side of Tokyo Station is a long red-brick building facing the Imperial Palace, opened in 1914. Tatsuno Kingo, the leading Japanese architect of the era, designed it in a Western Renaissance-revival manner, with domes at each end. War flattened the upper floors; a restoration completed in 2012 returned the building to its original 1914 form.
Key facts
- Location: Marunouchi, Chiyoda, Tokyo
- Architect: Tatsuno Kingo
- Opened: 1914
- Style: red-brick Renaissance revival
- Note: domes and upper floors restored in 2012
History
As Japan modernised, Tokyo needed a central station to match the capitals of the West. Tatsuno, who had studied in Britain, gave it a red-brick front nearly 300 metres long, with a hotel inside and domed pavilions at the ends.
Air raids in 1945 destroyed the third floor and the domes, which were rebuilt in a simpler form. A long restoration, finished in 2012, recreated the 1914 design in full, domes and all, and the station hotel reopened behind the brick.
What you see
The brick front stretches the length of a city block, calm and symmetrical, with the two domes anchoring the ends. Inside the north and south domes, restored reliefs look down on the crowds. After the glass towers of Marunouchi, the low red building reads as the city’s ceremonial entrance.
Practical information
- Open: daily, as a working station
- Cost: free to enter the concourse
- Best for: the Marunouchi façade and the dome interiors
- Time needed: 20–40 minutes
Getting there
Tokyo Station is the hub of the national rail network, served by Shinkansen and many lines. The Marunouchi front faces the Imperial Palace gardens, a short walk away.
Nearby
- Imperial Palace — the palace and East Gardens, across the plaza
- Marunouchi — the business district of towers and shopping streets
Sources
- Encyclopædia Britannica / Wikipedia — Tokyo Station
- East Japan Railway (JR East) — station heritage pages
- Wikimedia Commons — image source and licence
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