up the work due to World War I. In 1918, Czechoslovakia became an independent country; Letzel was appointed commercial attaché at the Czechoslovak embassy in Tokyo in 1919. In March 1920 he returned home, but went back to Japan few months later for his attaché post. In November 1922, Letzel traveled to Japan and later witnessed the destruction of many of his buildings in the 1923 Great Kantō earthquake. Deeply disappointed, he returned to Prague in November 1923 and died a few years later at the age of 45. External links A look at the Czech architect who built Hiroshima's Industrial Promotion Hall – today's A-Bomb Dome 2000, Letzel Year Šumné stopy: Jan Letzel (video in Czech) – document of Czech television filmed in the Czech Republic and Japan 1880 births 1925 deaths People from Náchod 19th-century Czech architects 20th-century Czech architects Modernist architects Czech expatriates in Japan Art Nouveau architects