Welcome to Dolls of Japan

Welcome to Dolls of Japan, a web site dedicated to the artistry and beauty of wooden and pottery dolls from Japan. The site aims to detail the history and traditions of creative and traditional kokeshi dolls, daruma dolls and hakata dolls and to give an insight into these beautiful pieces of art.

The origin of Japanese dolls is also extremely old, beginning in the Jomon period about 3,000 years BC. However, it is only since the Edo Era(1603-1867) that dolls have come to take on a wide variety of forms and purposes, and many different types have been produced.

Wooden dolls, known as Kokeshi, from the Tohiku region of northern Japan, flourished during this period with differing areas adopting unique styles.

These traditional styles remained unchanged until the post war period when artists began to abandon the traditional styles and a new form was created. "Creative Kokeshi" dolls are now a main stay of popular Japanese culture with the very best being awarded the Prime Minister's award each year.

Our Kokeshi History section details the history and traditions of these unique and individual pieces of art whilst our Traditional Kokeshi and Creative Kokeshi sections explain the differences that exist between the two schools of design.

Daruma dolls are representations of the historical Indian priest Bodhidharma, a sage who travelled throughout Japan and China in the 5th or 6th century AD. The dolls represent the virtues of Bodhidharma in terms of his optimism, his good fortune and his strong determination. At New Year time, many Japanese individuals and corporations buy a Daruma doll, make a resolution, and then paint in one of the eyes. If, during the year, they are able to achieve their goal, they paint in the second eye. Many politicians, at the beginning of an election period, will buy a Daruma doll, paint in one eye, and then, if they win the election, paint in the other eye. At year end, it is customary to take the Daruma doll to a temple, where it is burned in a big bonfire. Read more about the legends of Bodhidharma and Darma Dolls in our Daruma dolls section.

Hakata dolls originate from Fukuoka Prefecture in the 17th Century and have over the past three hundred years developed into cultural icons not only in Japan but also across the world. Learn more about Hakata dolls in our detailed and informative Hakata Dolls section.

There are many different styles of Japanese Doll, but there is one philosophy that all Kokeshi, Darma and Hakata dolls share and that is the pursuit of beauty and artistry through simplicity.

We hope that you enjoy the site and please do not hesitate to let us know what you think of the site using our contact page.