Traditional Crafts

Kiji-guruma Wooden ToysFolk Crafts

Kiji-guruma are one of Kyushu's most distinctive wooden toys, and appeal to many people due to their rustic charm. Said to act as guides for acquiring good fortune, marriage and household harmony, they gained fame throughout Japan because they were mentioned in a poem by Hakushu Kitahara - a leading poet of modern Japan. They are made by carving dried out pine or paulownia using only a hatchet or blade, then assembled without using a single nail and finally painted.