| ID Code | 3108-0048 |
|---|---|
| Artifact Name | Leather belt |
| Donor | NANKO Masaru |
| Receiving Date | 2004/10/07 |
| Size (W×H×D) (mm) | 930×30 |
| Distance from the Hypocenter(m) | 900-1200 |
| Number | 1 |
| Location | Kokutaiji, Senda areas |
| Description | Osamu came home, firmly holding this belt in his hand. Donated by Masaru Nanko Exposed to the bomb at Zakoba-cho (now, Kokutaiji-machi), 1,200m from the hypocenter Osamu Nanko (then,12), a first-year student at First Hiroshima Prefectural Junior High School, was A-bombed while working as a mobilized student at a building demolition site. His older brother, Masaru, rushed to the site, worried about him, but was unable to get there since fierce fires were spreading through the area. Between two and three o'clock in the afternoon, Osamu was brought home to Ujina-machi on a bicycle pushed by an unknown man. He was severely burned from head to toe. He passed away later that evening while his mother, Shizuko, and Masaru attended him. My brother came home, severely burned and holding only this belt in his hand. Masaru Nanko, Osamu's older brother, relates: "When my brother came home, I didn't recognize him from his face alone, since my brother was severely burned from head to toe, with his skin dangling and whole his body blistered. His clothes had been burned away, and he had only his underpants on. He was firmly holding this belt in his hand. It was his treasured item, which he had received as a congratulatory present on his admission to First Junior High School. Since we were told not to give him water, my mother only allowed herself to moisten Osamu's mouth with gauze soaked with water. He died in the evening of August 6. The following day, we cremated his body in a vacant lot near our house. It was the death of a 12-year-old boy full of hope and expectations since he had just entered his chosen junior high school. The belt was stored in the Buddhist altar at home. My mother used to take it out from time to time and caress it lovingly." |