Naikaku Sōri Daijin Kantei

The present Kantei, from the hill side

The Sōri-daijin Kantei (総理大臣官邸), popularly Sōri Kantei (総理官邸) or Kantei (官邸), is the office of the Prime Minister of Japan. It is located in the Nagatachō neighborhood of Chiyoda, Tokyo, opposite the National Diet Building.

The first Kantei was a two-story mansion, heavily influenced by Frank Lloyd Wright, built in 1929 for Prime Minister Tanaka Giichi. Today, the old Kantei has a "mystery" bullet hole in its glass facade. Nobody is entirely sure how it got there: some believe that the bullet was fired during the February 26 Incident of 1936, while others attribute it an uprising in August 1945, and still others say that it comes from a student revolt in 1960.

A new five-story Kantei was completed in April 2002 at a total cost of approximately 70 billion yen. The first Kantei was then moved 50 meters to the south and refurnished as the Sōri Kōtei (総理公邸), or official residence of the Prime Minister.

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  The present Kantei from the valley side
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  The first Kantei in 1929 at its completion
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  The entrance hall of the first Kantei
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  The first Kantei as the Kōtei today
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  Japanese 500 yen coin showing the old Kantei
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  The special drawing room which is in the fourth floor

External links

• Kantei website
• A virtual tour of the "Kantei"
• A virtual tour of the former "Kantei"