Fans of James Bond’s most recent outing Skyfall might feel a creeping sense of familiarity if they decide to take a look at the latest Street View project. That’s because the abandoned Japanese island of Hashima served as the location for Raoul Silva’s “Dead City” retreat in the film.
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Also known as the “Battleship Island” because of its resemblance to a warship when seen in battle, Hashima was once a thriving coal-mining settlement. Mitsubishi bought the island in 1890 and began the project, the aim of which was retrieving coal from undersea mines. As petrol began replacing coal however, mines around the country began to shut down. Hashima was no exception and its last resident departed in 1974.
The island is currently administered by the city of Nagasaki, with which Google worked in order to get Street View footage of some parts of Hashima that are off-limits to the public.
The footage was captured using Google’s Trekker backpack while the 360 degree camera technology it uses for its Business Photos service was used to capture images inside the derelict buildings.
