Images: Shizuoka: A Global Center for Plastic Modeling

Clockwise from upper left: a monument in the shopping arcade near Shizuoka Station features parts of a seat and a digital display of a Shinkansen; the monument at the smoking area near the station’s north exit consists of parts from a large outdoor ashtray; a monument designed like an old-style model box and a newly opened kit advertises Shizuoka’s connection to modeling. (© Nippon.com)

The monument outside Shizuoka City Hall includes an actual post box. (© Nippon.com)

Tamiya’s Hotshot. The four-wheel-drive radio-controlled buggy debuted in 1985 and remains a popular item with hobbyists of all ages. (© Nippon.com)

Characters from the Mobile Suit Gundam series, a mainstay among modeling enthusiasts, greet visitors to Hobby Square. (© Nippon.com)

New and historic items are on exhibit at Hobby Square. (© Nippon.com)

An exhibit detailing the manufacturing process for Gundam models. (© Nippon.com)

Manufacturer Bandai offers specially designed model kits as part of its Gunpla Academia, a school-based initiative to introduce students to the world of craftsmanship. (© Nippon.com)

A plastic model monument featuring the golden Kindamigusoku armor worn by Tokugawa Ieyasu. (© Nippon.com)

Early wooden models made by Aoshima’s company on display at Hobby Square. (© Nippon.com)

Clockwise from upper left: Wooden boat models; the 1/800 scale model of the Yamato; Tamiya’s Panther tank. (© Nippon.com)

Tamiya’s radio-controlled Porsche 934 Turbo (right), which triggered a radio-controlled car boom in Japan, and other offerings in the series. (© Nippon.com)