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A-bomb Artifacts

ID Code 4101-0038
Artifact Name Buddhist statue
Donor Mikio YAMADA
Receiving Date 2012/09/17
Size (W×H×D) (mm) 150×270×120
Distance from the Hypocenter(m) 450m
Number 1
Location Kamiya-cho, Hondori areas
Description Buddhist statue
Donated by Mikio Yamada 
Akira Yamada (then, 31), the donor's father, was exposed to the bomb from his home in Onaga-machi about 3km from the hypocenter. Although the roof of the house was blown off, he wasn't seriously injured and he went in to the center of the city the next day to search for family members. Akira found this Buddhist statue in the burnt out ruins of the shoe store run by his older brother and his wife in Tate-machi. In front of the bomb shelter, he found the remains of 2 people and thought they were his brother and brother's wife. Akira was the youngest of 6 children, and only he survived the atomic bombing. Altogether, he lost 10 family members.

Mikio Yamada recalls:
My father, who lost many relatives all at once, hardly ever talked about the atomic bombing in his lifetime. He placed this Buddhist statue where he could easily see it and took good care of it. He told me to donate it to the Peace Memorial Museum after his death, but it was so important to him that it was hard for me to part with it after he died. I finally decided to donate it after my mother died in August.

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