Last Known Photo of Hachiko

Above, the statue of Hachiko outside of Shibuya Station. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

RocketNews24 has posted the last known photograph of Hachiko, the faithful Akita dog who is immortalized as a statue outside of Shibuya Station in Tokyo and in movies.

If you are unfamiliar with Hachiko's story, here's a snippet from RocketNews24:

Hachiko, was an Akita dog that belonged to a professor at the University of Tokyo. Every day he would meet his master at Shibuya Station until one day in 1925 when the professor never returned. Unbeknownst to Hachiko, his master had suffered a fatal brain hemorrhage and would never come home again. But there Hachiko sat, day after day, waiting in vain for the return of his beloved master. The story of the dog that never gave up gained a lot of attention from local and national news, inspiring many people to visit Hachiko at Shibuya Station to offer treats. The story eventually spread throughout the world and a Hollywood film starring Richard Gere was even made based on Hachiko’s story.

 People from around the world were so touched by Hachiko's story that a collection was taken up to erect a statue in his honor. The statue is a favorite meeting place for Tokyo citizens.

Above, the first photo of me in Japan was at the Hachiko statue in November 2001. Photo by Richard Pusateri.

On March 8, 1935, Hachiko was found dead on the street and the image RocketNews24 posted is of his body with owner's wife and staff members of Shibuya Station surrounding him in mourning.

To read the article, go here.