MANILA, Philippines - To give tribute to the most touching dog story of all time, the University of Tokyo’s agriculture department has erected a bronze statue depicting a happy Hachiko upon seeing his owner.
Hachiko the Akita from Japan has been known as a symbol of loyalty. Because of its heartrending impact, his inspiring story has been transferred from generation to generation through books, movies and television shows.
Legend has it that Hachiko would wait for Ueno, his master, to come home from work at the Tokyo Shibuya Station every day. When his master suddenly died from cerebral hemorrhage, Hachiko continued to show up at the station for nine years, following his routine when his master was still alive. He did this day after day, year in and year out.
On 1934, a bronze statue of Hachiko was erected in front of the station, with a poem engraved on a placard titled "Lines to a loyal dog." However, the statue was melted down during the war for other purposes. A second memorial was put up on 1948, modeling a waiting Hachiko.
Hachiko died on 1935. He breathed his last in a Shibuya side street.
This year marks the Ueno’s 90th death anniversary, and Hackiho’s 80th. And to immortalize their greatest friendship and give tribute to the contributions of Ueno to University of Tokyo’s agriculture department, the statue was put up. According to reports,an online charity drive has yielded around half of the estimated 10 million yen (about US$98,000) to make the project possible.
Netizens were touched to see the two finally reunite even only through sculpture.
I already cried when I saw the 1987 #Hachiko movie. Now, this is really heartbreaking and I'm crying again http://t.co/j9hlTYVzRM T_T
— Rea Jean Ilagan (@realvin_17) February 11, 2015 Hachiko & Prof. Ueno, finally reunited after 90 years!!! My heart, my heart. (Photo from @hide_luxe) pic.twitter.com/7o9AVQaeul
— Kel Joven (@KELjoven) February 11, 2015 Hachiko died 80 years ago and is finally reunited in that statue, and its so perfect.
— Matrices (@RaisedbyDogs) February 11, 2015 I don't have enough tears to do this story justice. http://t.co/x4C0UktPwL
— Sarra Manning (@sarramanning) February 10, 2015
Source: Rocketnews24.com