Tamaki Miura and Giacomo Puccini Statues
After World War II, Japan was occupied by the Allied Forces, and the Former Glover House was requisitioned for officer housing. The last resident was US Army Captain Joseph C. Goldsby, who lived there with his wife, Barbara. Inspired by the scenery and the unique design of the house, the couple nicknamed it “Madam Butterfly House” after Puccini’s famous opera, Madama Butterfly. The opera tells the story of a young Japanese bride living in Nagasaki as she waits in vain for the return of her husband, a US Navy officer.
Despite lacking any genuine connection to the opera, the house kept the nickname even after the couple left in 1949. After the occupation, the Former Glover House was returned to Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and donated by the company to Nagasaki City in 1957. It was opened to the public the following year and Nagasaki City promoted the house as the “Place Connected with Madam Butterfly.” In 1963, the city installed a bronze statue of prima donna Miura Tamaki (1884–1946), who was famous for performing the role of Madam Butterfly more than 2,000 times. The nearby statue of Giacomo Puccini (1858–1924) was donated in 1996 by the province of Lucca, Italy as a symbol of friendship.