Mitsubishi Limited Partnership Company Bank Head Office (1922) [Kotaro Sakurai: Attempting the Classical Style]

The Mitsubishi Goshi Kaisha Banking Department Head Office (completed in 1922) was designed by Kotaro Sakurai and located across Daimyo-koji from Mitsubishi Ichigokan (where the Mitsubishi UFJ Bank Head Office is currently located). It is a four-story reinforced concrete building. The building's exterior, a stark departure from the British-style red brick style of previous Mitsubishi numbered buildings, is constructed of concrete in a classical style reminiscent of Greek and Roman temples (or, as Terunobu Fujimori calls it, "Neo-Greek Revival"). This style was favored by banks and insurance companies at the time, and the Mitsubishi Bank is an early example of this trend. The eaves height is consistent with that of Mitsubishi Ichigokan, demonstrating a mindset that continues to this day at Mitsubishi Jisho Design, where design styles change but remain consistent with surrounding buildings.

Among the drawings, the drawings for the "windows" are what catch your eye. There are many drawings that depict in detail even the intricate mechanisms of the sashes. A distinctive feature of the "windows" in this work is the large gabled glass skylight installed above the sales office. This skylight allows a lot of light into the sales office where customers come, making it a building where a lot of light pours in. But wait? Looking at the drawings, there are drawings for a large-scale renovation in 1926, just four years after completion, to build a roof with unfortunate specifications, consisting of corrugated iron sheets on cedar log joists, to cover this beautiful skylight... And to have been renovated in such a short period of time, must it have leaked because of rain? Maybe the design was a bit too aggressive...