Ginza's Matsuzakaya Department Store Closing

Above, the Matsuzakaya department store in Ginza is at left in December 2010.  The store is marked by its distinctive
yellow and red sign.  Photo by Armand Vaquer.

The oldest department store in Tokyo's famed Ginza district is going to close its doors for good.

The Asahi Shimbun is reporting that the Matsuzakaya department store will be closing this coming spring.  The store opened in 1924.

Above, the large building at right is the Matsuzakaya department store in 1933 in this vintage post card.

The Ginza Matsuzakaya was one of the buildings Godzilla destroyed in the original 1954 movie.

Speaking of which, the Matsuzakaya has a humorous bit of Godzilla history.  According to David Kalat's A Critical History and Filmography of Toho's Godzilla Series: