The Oya History Museum, home to the former Oya Stone Underground Quarry, was a place I’d always wanted to visit. Since I was back in Tokyo for winter break, I decided to check it out.
The moment I stepped in, I was overwhelmed by the sight that spread before me – it was truly an underground temple. I was also amazed when I visited the Metropolitan Area Outer Underground Discharge Channel in Kasukabe, but unlike its orderly feel, this place still retained a sense of being “dug little by little.” You could really feel the weight of time here, which intensified the “temple” vibe. This place covers a vast area of approximately 20,000 square meters (140m x 150m), is 30m deep, and its deepest point reaches 60m underground. They say it’s so massive that an entire baseball stadium could fit inside!
During the war, it was used as an underground warehouse and military factory. After the war, it served as a storage facility for government rice. More recently, it’s been used as a location for various film shoots. The one I remember thinking, “Ah, that’s right!” was the movie “Fly Me to the Saitama.” It seems like for the past 40 years or so, it’s been used almost every year for filming movies, music videos, and the like. It’s even been used as an underground wedding venue since 1993.
It’s surprising to learn that until 1959 (Showa 34), it was all hand-dug with pickaxes, and the extracted stones were even carried out on people’s backs using “shoiko” (back frames). From 1960 (Showa 35), mechanical excavation began, and after mechanization, they switched to a hoisting system using motor winches. The exhibits around this area are quite extensive and fascinating!
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