The Presidential Office Building Permanent Exhibition

In his design for the four corners of the Presidential Office Building, Nagano Uheiji included octagonal chambers protruding out into the central courtyard, enhancing the structure's earthquake resistance and stability. In addition, the governor-general at that time, Akashi Motojiro, wanted to prevent government officials from smoking in their offices. So during the Office of the Governor-General period these chambers were planned as smoking rooms, which shows that even back then the concept of secondhand smoke was recognized. Each floor of the chambers also featured small red windows that fed into a refuse chute to receive rubbish that would be collected on the ground floor. As times changed, that refuse disposal system fell into disuse.