Shimofusa toy of frog motif

paper doll frog

clay face frog

tumbling doll frog

We show you folk toy called Shimofusa gangu. Shimofusa means the north area of Chiba prefecture and gangu means toy. It was named by Setsutaro Matsumoto. He passed away in 2004 when he was 101 years old. He had created a lot of Shimofusa toy through his life. He mainly had created paper doll, clay face, and tumbling doll (=daruma) including each frog motif one.

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Frog motif spining top

This frog item is a spining top. The spining top is a folk toy called Edo goma in Japanese which has created since the Edo period in Japan. Masaaki Hiroi（1935－2019）was the outstanding folk toy creator. He had made a lot of attractive spining tops icluding frog motif one.

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The event about frogs and frog goods at Aquamarine Inawashiro Kingfishers Aquarium collaborated with the 100-year frog collection museum.

This event is now on until November 27,Sunday in 2022.

The aquarium shows ecological exhibits of frogs and toads living in Japan and abroad.And the latter half of the event we, 100-year frog collection museum show 5 display cases of categorized froggy goods.

1) Froggy specialities made in around Japan.

2) Frog items related on Japanese traditional culture.

3) The relationship on between Japonism and frog items.

4) Stylish frog goods.

5) Froggy gardening items.

Please check it out!

https://www.aquamarine.or.jp/kawasemi/

These are planters designed frog.

 

It seems that gardenning is very popular all over the world. We also enjoy it in Japan. And we can find frog motived planters like these on the photo at a shop. The left one was made in Thailand and the right one was made in Mexico. 

We will display them on the latter term display of the exhibit  "Kaeru"(=frogs and toads) at Aquamarin Inawashiro Kawasemi Aquarium in Fukushima prefecture. You are going to see frogs and toads habitat in Japan and overseas with the exhibit corner of  froggy goods of 100-year frog collection museum in Kitakata city. 

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Emerging from hibernation takes frogs to cherry blossoms season.

It had been cold yet early in April in Aizu. We found a frog staying still in mixed dead leaves and fresh leaves in the garden of the 100 year frog collection museum. 

But before blooming cherry blossoms he is going to be awaken like the cray art frog in a bed and get a move on. I had boght this miniature frog about 30 years ago at Covent Garden in London. It always makes me feeling warm in Spring to think that many kinds of frogs are living in this earth and we can find frog items around the world.

「１００年カエル館」　http://kaeru-kan.com

「カエ～ル大学」http://kaeru-kan.com/kayale-u

Blogカエルタイムズ http://kaeru-kan.cocolog-nifty.com/vikki/

コトバデフリカエル　http://kaeru-kan.cocolog-nifty.com/kotobadefurikaeru/

This is an Az-zulecha Frog made in Portugal.

This frog ornament is made by Portuguese traditional tile art named Az-zulecha. Az-zlercha means mosaic piece in Arabic lunguage. The tequnic of Portuguese Az-zulecha was imported from Sevilla in Spain where it had been brought by Muslim in the Middle Ages.Currently we can find various Az-zlech ornaments. This frog is one of them. By the way what specie of frog is the model of this frog? May be it is living in Portugal. Don't you think it is a frog like Iberian Water Frog by a following illustration, do you?

illustrted by Masru Shibata

「１００年カエル館」　http://kaeru-kan.com

「カエ～ル大学」http://kaeru-kan.com/kayale-u

Blogカエルタイムズ http://kaeru-kan.cocolog-nifty.com/vikki/

コトバデフリカエル　http://kaeru-kan.cocolog-nifty.com/kotobadefurikaeru/

Frog designed pottery for mosquito coil incense stick

This is a frog designed pottery which we put mosquito coil insense stick in. In Japan pig designed pottery was popular for the  same ways, but I found and bought the froggy one in Tokyo in 1980's. It was a popular product and not expensive.

「１００年カエル館」　http://kaeru-kan.com

「カエ～ル大学」http://kaeru-kan.com/kayale-u

Blogカエルタイムズ http://kaeru-kan.cocolog-nifty.com/vikki/

コトバデフリカエル　http://kaeru-kan.cocolog-nifty.com/kotobadefurikaeru/

“A flower vase with a frog formed object”collection

 

These are antique flowe vases. We can see at least one frog on each of them. A frog and a flower need water for living.

Frog items related on Japanese calligrapher Ono no Tofu

We are introducing the frog items related on Ono no Tofu(or Michikaze), Japanese calligrapher who lived in the Heian period（794-1185). It is said that when Tofu felt inadequate about his calligraphy he saw one frog try to jump on a willow branch again and again until it reached the willow. And he realized that he needed diligent as this frog.

Now we can see his depiction in Hanafuda cards, dolls of Tofu with an expression of a frog and implements jusut expressed a frog jumping to willow branch.

「１００年カエル館」　http://kaeru-kan.com

「カエ～ル大学」http://kaeru-kan.com/kayale-u

「コトバデフリカエル」http://kaeru-kan.cocolog-nifty.com/kotobadefurikaeru

Happy New Year 2021！