Shuri Castle, a UNESCO World Heritage Site on the Japanese island of Okinawa, has had a rough existence. It served as the residence and religious hub of the Second Shō Dynasty, which ruled the southern Ryukyu Kingdom from the mid 15th century until its annexation by the Meiji government in 1879. Fire consumed the massive walled complex in 1453, 1660, and 1709, and each time it was rebuilt soon after. But after the castle suffered massive damage from shelling by the U.S. battleship Mississippi during World War II, reconstruction didn’t occur until the 1990s—only for another conflagration to claim six of the main buildings on Oct. 31.
