Shimoura Bentenkai

Clay dolls from Amakusa city in Kumamoto prefecture. Shimoura-benten-kai has started in 2013 as a group to support local businesses and traditional techniques to create the dolls. This small town in Amakusa used to be a well known place for clay dolls and has more than 300 years of history. Unfortunately most craftsman have retired but recently a few number of women have volunteered to learn the techniques to create dolls and carry on the tradition.