FUKUOKA -- An illusory "keep" of Fukuoka Castle, a designated national historic site, will again brighten the night skies amid blooming cherry blossom trees this spring, the Fukuoka Municipal Government has announced.

Fukuoka Castle was built by Kuroda Nagamasa, the first feudal lord of the Fukuoka domain, and his father Kuroda Kanbei, with construction starting in 1601 and lasting seven years. Stone foundations within the historic grounds remain, but no blueprints or drawings have been found that show a castle tower was there.

The municipal government in March 2024 had a roughly 14-meter-high castle keep made from simple pipes installed as a "phantom castle keep." This year, just like last, the structure will be designed and built by Osaka-based JR West Built Co. While last year it was illuminated until May, this year it is being pitched as a "castle keep of spring" and will be limited to the end of the cherry blossom season.

The structure will be lit up from March 7, continuing through the end of the Fukuokajyo Sakura Festival, which begins around the same time as the start of the cherry blossom season, the municipal government revealed on Jan. 23.

According to the city, there were around 610,000 visitors during the two-week span of the sakura festival from March 27 through April 9 last year. In a city questionnaire of about 1,000 visitors conducted during that time, around 80% responded that the illumination project was "good." About 70% agreed that it made them more interested in Fukuoka Castle and its history.

(Japanese original by Shizuka Takebayashi, Kyushu News Department)