Archeological Site of Nakagusuku Udun

Nakagusuku Udun was the palace of the Ryukyuan crown prince, traditionally given rule of the Nakagusuku domain. The original villa was built in the seventeenth century near the Chuzanmon Gate and later relocated in 1873 to a site facing Ryutan pond. About 20 wooden buildings were arranged around Ryukyuan-style gardens and courtyards, with a clear central axis derived from Chinese palace design but arranged more freely in the Japanese aesthetic tradition. The complex was destroyed during the Battle of Okinawa in 1945. Only a well and the perimeter stone walls remain. Excavations began in 2008 after a museum building constructed on the site in 1966 was demolished.