Built originally in 1628, Fukusai-Ji was the second of the temples built by Chinese in Nagasaki. After the founding of the Obaku Zen sect it became an Obaku Temple. It burned down in the fires that followed the atomic bombing of the city in 1945.
The current structure, shaped like a giant turtle, was constructed in 1976 and as well as being a zen temple is also a mausoleum to 16,000 war dead. It is popularly known as Nagasaki Kannon Universal temple. The temple bell rings at 11.02 am, the time of the atomic blast.
Standing atop the turtle is an 18 meter tall statue of Kannon, like the giant turtle head protruding from the building it is made out of aluminum alloy.
The main hall is home to possibly the second largest Foucault Pendulum in the world. Used to show the rotation of the earth, a 25 meter long cable begins in the head of Kannon and passes through the main hall down into the basement where a weighted sphere swings over the remains of the war dead.
In the above photo you can see the cable coming down through the opening in the ceiling before descending into the opening in the floor surrounded by guardrails.
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