Kimisarazu Tower, Observation tower in Ōdayama Park, Kisarazu, Japan
Kimisarazu Tower is a 28-metre concrete observation tower on the summit of Mount Ōda, 44 metres above sea level, in Ōdayama Park. A broad cylindrical platform on a central pillar carries two parallel rectangular shafts, each topped by a bronze statue: Yamato Takeru with a horn on the left, Ototachibana Hime upright on the right. Seen from the car park the silhouette resembles a Kisarazu boat.
The tower was completed in March 1992 for the 50th anniversary of Kisarazu's city status, funded through the national Furusato Sōsei (hometown revitalization) project. It stands on the 44 m summit of Ōdayama, with a 28 m tower and an observation deck at 11.7 m. Its name comes from the legend of Yamato Takeru and Ototachibana-hime, which the city promotes as the origin of the name Kisarazu.
The tower's name comes from the legend of Yamato Takeru and Oto Tachibana Hime, which the city promotes as the origin of the name Kisarazu, from "kimi sarazu" (the lord did not leave). The two facing bronze figures on top are Yamato Takeru and Oto Tachibana Hime; at night they are lit up, and the tower was ranked first in a 2011 TV Asahi ranking of night views where love comes true.
The tower stands on the 44 m summit of Mount Ōda in Ōdayama Park. From JR Kisarazu Station's east exit it is about 15 minutes on foot, or take the Ōta loop bus to Koi no Mori and walk 5 minutes. A free car park holds 68 vehicles.
Seen from the car park, the tower's outline reads as a ship, built to evoke the Kisarazu-bune boats that carried goods between Edo and Kisarazu in the Edo period; some describe it instead as a sword. The two bronze figures on top are Yamato Takeru and Oto Tachibana Hime, facing each other.
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