文化アパートメント

The Bunka Apartments (文化アパートメント, Bunka apātomento; lit. 'Culture Apartments') was a residential building located on the bank of the Kanda River at Ochanomizu in Bunkyō, Tokyo. It was commissioned by Morimoto Kōkichi as part of a drive to introduce western living to Japan. Designed by American architect William Merrell Vories and completed in 1925, the four-storey, Spanish Mission-style building was the first western block of flats to be constructed in the country. The Bunka Apartments offered well-appointed accommodation with imported fittings, and facilities including a lounge, café, dining room, and shops. The building was requisitioned by the US military following Japan's defeat in the Second World War, and was later acquired by the Obunsha publishing company for use as a student dormitory. It was razed in 1986 to make way for the Century Tower.