Hyogo: Repainted Gigantor Unveiled in Kobe; Monument Serves as Symbol of Reconstruction from Quake

The Yomiuri Shimbun

12:07 JST, March 15, 2025

KOBE — The huge monument of Gigantor, or Tetsujin 28-go, located in a town square in Nagata Ward, Kobe, has been repainted.

Gigantor is a giant robot character created by Mitsuteru Yokoyama, a mangaka from Kobe. The 15-meter-tall “life-sized” monument was installed in 2009 as a symbol of reconstruction in the south area of JR Shin-Nagata Station, which was devastated by the 1995 Great Hanshin Earthquake. About 80% of buildings in the district were destroyed or burned down in the disaster.

Its faded colors were noticeable after wind and rain exposure, so it was repainted in February, for the first time since 2016.

After repainting was complete, the scaffolding was removed by the end of February. The Gigantor monument revealed its restored luster, sparkling in the sunlight.

This year marks the 30th anniversary of the Great Hanshin Earthquake.

“We hope people will come to see the restored streetscape as well as the beautiful Tetsujin,” said Seiji Okada of the Kobe Tetsujin Project, an NPO organization made up of local store owners who suffered major damage from the earthquake.