The Meiji period of Japan (1867-1912) saw a cultural and economic revolution as Japan changed from a post-feudal and isolated country to an Eastern world power. Clothing, building materials, military equipment, armaments, consumer goods and many other items were not only purchased from the West, but manufactured on the islands as the Japanese eagerly sought to replicate the products and technology produced in the other countries.
In 1895, during the middle of this new-age revolution, a state-of-the-art prison was built on the edge of Tokyo, influenced heavily by European designs. The building featured a large administration center with six long wings of holding cells; five twostory and one single-story in height. Accompanying this were service areas, exercise yards, an execution building, a laundry and a smaller building for women. Through the
