Daini Honcho-ku Festival Float
The oldest float in the festival is a tall dashi that was purchased from Tokyo by members of Daini Honcho-ku neighborhood in 1891 and pulled to Kumagaya by oxen. The purchase price was reported to be 500 yen making it about the same price as a luxury sports car in today’s money. The float is believed to have been made during the late Edo period (1603–1867) and was used in the annual festival at Tokyo’s Kanda Myojin Shrine before it was brought to Kumagaya.
The float is decorated with gilded panels carved with dragons, birds, and cloud motifs, and is topped with a figure of the deity Ame no Tajikarao. According to legend, when the sun goddess Amaterasu hid herself in a cave, Ame no Tajikarao threw aside the rock in front of the cave and pulled her out, returning light to the world. He is known as the deity of strength and the protector of agriculture. The float is a Tangible Folk Cultural Property of Kumagaya.
